The Sandroid
by Karaumea
Summary: In the far future, Inuyasha finds himself as the new toy of a beautiful girl while he was tying to hide from those that hunted him. Rated for adult content.
1. The Fugitive

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

**Author's note:** Yay! A new story! I hope you will like this one, too. I would like to warn you that I haven't watched a sci-fi movie for a very, very long time. So, please feel free to warn me if I mess this up. I just couldn't help but write it when the story just popped up in my head two days ago. Finally, I would pronounce S-android in the same way as Sandroid. Enjoy!

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**The S-android**

**Chapter 1****: The Fugitive**

He cursed once more when he realized they were still after him. _Damn it._ He traveled through almost half of the galaxy, but couldn't manage to get the troops off his tail. _Stubborn bastards!_ He maneuvered his ship through a group of meteors hoping that they weren't fool enough to follow after him. He smirked when he noticed that more than half of his followers disappeared from his sight, probably crashed with the meteors. _Keh! Novices! As if they could beat me…_ He was not one to be taken lightly when it came to flying ships. Oh, no… He was maybe more experienced than anyone in this galaxy. After all, he spent half of his time being chased by some force of authority. Being a universal outlaw, one got used to such things.

This time, however, his pursuers were more insistent than ever. He wasn't blaming them, mind you… He knew how much trouble this job could cause him, but he did it anyway. What he stole was really valuable, and even he had heard of its importance. He only hoped he would live to get the loaded payment he had been promised.

That Naraku bastard… He did not trust him in the least. But as long as he had the jewel, he could always bribe the bastard into paying him, right? That is, if he can survive this chase in the end. _Shit!_ Even after the meteors, there were at least a dozen ships on his tail. _Now what?_ He had to do something to get rid of them. Maybe he should not have accepted this job in the first place. That bastard already got what he wanted. The jewel was out of his way… But he couldn't have resisted such a big prize, now could he? One could buy a little planet with so much money. No, he had no regrets. Well, maybe one… If only he did not get blinded by that bitch's charms, things would have been easier. Luckily, he had seen her for what she was before it was too late. _Keh! The bitch got what she deserved in the end._

The panel on his left was signaling that the fuel was low. _Damn this old junk of a ship!_ In his hurry to run away, he stole the first thing he came upon to get out of that hell. He didn't have much of a choice… In fact, he was lucky that he found at least something to make his escape with. It was a miracle that the old junk made it this far. _Well, well, well… What do we have here…? Aren't I the luckiest bastard ever…_ It seemed that he still had a chance to save his ass. The planet which his old friend and partner in crime, Miroku, currently resided in was right on his route. _If I can only make it there, I can get lost in the crowd._

He put the ship on full force to make it to his new destination with all the power the ship had left. It felt as if an eternity passed until he was in the atmosphere. The old ship started to shake wildly while it fell through the city he meant to land in the first place. Even though he used every tool to stop his fall, nothing worked. After all that he'd been through, now he was out of luck? _Fuck!_ At least he was able to slow down his fall to some extent. He was going to crash, that was unstoppable, but maybe he could survive this after all…

* * *

A loud crashing sound was heard in the outer skirts of the big city. The few who witnessed the fall of the space ship onto the small park in their neighborhood got closer to its remains, regardless of the danger of it exploding. It looked completely ruined, but there could still be some part of it to sell. A young boy who was walking on the smoking remains in search of something salvageable jumped in fear at the sound of cranking metals. He looked where the sound came from and saw the part which had been the door of the ship before it crashed moving. The next instant, the door flew to his right with incredible speed, and in its place stood a disheveled looking man. When the man walked closer on his shaking legs, the boy's mouth fell open at his appearance. He might not have been out of the planet in his life, but this was a big city with lots of trading places and a large port with millions of visitors from almost everywhere in the galaxy. He could confidently say that he had seen almost every kind of creature that lived in this galaxy. But this man… He had seen nothing like him. Despite his tattered clothes, the man looked… regal. With his striking silver hair and bright golden eyes he was a fine specimen. He looked almost human… except those strange ears that looked like a dog's. When the stranger came closer, the boy saw that he also had a strong looking body, which could be dangerous as well. Without giving the man a chance to do anything, he turned his back and started running away.

The man smirked at the boy's fear. _Stupid human… Never seen a hanyou before?_ Shaking his head, he looked at his surroundings. He was lucky not to have collided into a building, for he was not sure if he could survive such an ordeal. Thanks to his demonic heritage, he was able to get out of the remains of the ship in one peace. However, if he wanted to live, he had to get out of there as soon as possible. He did not have permit to land on this planet, and the security was most likely about to pay him a visit. Not to mention that his pursuers must have already warned them about him. Not wanting to waste anymore time, he sprinted in the direction he thought his old friend's place was, leaving his audience in shock at his sudden disappearance. _Keh! Humans… They have always been so slow._

* * *

"This line is not traceable, is it?"

"Do you think I'm stupid? Of course it's not! My father is not a senator for nothing. I can get a secure line whenever I want."

"Don't get angry with me now. I just want to be sure, you know. I've had a few close calls these days."

"Hmm… I can only guess. So you have some good stuff, you say?"

"I do. Most of them just came in. I'm sure you'll find something to your tastes."

"You're sure? I don't want to risk coming over for nothing."

"Absolutely sure."

"Okay then. I'll be there in an hour."

"I'll be waiting, my lady."

Ending the conversation, the young man with shoulder length dark hair tied at the nape of his neck, and impossibly dark blue eyes made his way to the cooler to get something for lunch before his customer came over. It was a risky job what he was doing. But, has he ever done anything that wasn't risky in his life? At least selling illegal products was better than running around stealing stuff. He had his own place, and quite a few customers, most of them from high ranks in the society. None of them would risk giving themselves away just to get him caught. Besides, he was the only one in this damned planet that provided them with the latest technology available. Hey, it was not easy to import illegal androids without anyone noticing. If you asked him, he would say that they should not be illegal at all. After all, they did nothing but sex, which did not harm anyone to this day. The senate did not agree with that though. These androids, generally called "the S-androids" –the S indicating their purpose, - were built too much like real humans for the sole purpose of increasing the reality of their services. But that was not the reason they were against their trade. A few years ago, the old folks argued that the birth rate was declining significantly in the planet due to the fact that people preferred the S-androids to human partners because of their good looks and limitless abilities to pleasure their owners. Not to mention that S-androids did not break your heart… _Idiots._ He was not sorry that they passed the law forbidding the trade and ownership of S-androids, though. Oh, no… It worked well for him, for he had some spare money enough to start a business at the time, and this was the perfect opportunity to make a fortune.

He took a look at his new babies from the door of the storage in the back of his little apartment-shop. He just received a new shipment two days ago, and he already had a few customers waiting in line to see the new S-androids. He smiled at the thought of the customer he would see in an hour. She was the daughter of one of the most powerful men in the city… a senator. He was surprised when she came to his place the first time three years ago. She was a real lady, a beautiful one at that. One would never guess that she would be a fan of his S-androids. But she was… and he was grateful for that. It was a pleasure to see her once in a while. One day, he might even ask to see her outside of this scrappy place. _That would be the day…_

He sighed and made his way toward the receiving room, which he also used as his living room. He stopped when he heard someone at his door. After checking the security monitor, he opened the door to receive his long time friend and old partner. His clothes were all ruined and he looked as if he had run through half of the planet to reach there. _Hmm… Maybe he did though…_

"Inuyasha? What the hell are you doing here?"

After regaining his breath, the silver-haired man took the lunch plate from his friend's hands and made himself comfortable on the sofa. "I need to hide lecher."

Sighing, the unwilling host took a seat beside his rude guest. "Again? What did you do this time? And what happened to your clothes, for god's sake?"

Munching on the food he just popped into his mouth, he answered not worrying about his friend's disgusted face. "I was being chased… crashed somewhere in the city… and ran here..." After swallowing, he continued. "It's the job I told you about the last time."

"You did it? Really? You stole it?"

He smirked at his friend's disbelieving expression, and held something hidden under his shirt. "Yeah, it's here."

"You bastard! I can't believe you managed to pull it off!"

"Hey, it's me… What did you think you moron? That I couldn't do it?" He rolled his eyes at his ex-partner. If anyone knew what he was capable of, it was Miroku, and it irritated him that the one man that should have had some faith in him would think that he would fail or get scared.

Seeing his friend's agitation, Miroku hurried to explain himself. "No, man… It's just… If anyone could do it, it would be you… but I didn't think you were going to do it."

"Why not? The payment was too high to ignore, you know…" When Miroku did not ask anything else, he decided to come to the point so that he could be out of that place and hopefully in a safer one. "Hey, lecher… I need something to change into, and I need you to find me someplace to hide until they are off my back. I'm sure they'll be searching around for me soon."

"Dude, if I get caught because of you, you'll have one more reason to run away for the rest of your life."

"Keh! Cut the shit lecher. I know you're prepared for anything. How else you're going to keep doing this shit if you didn't have a way to hide those stupid toys of yours?"

"Well, it's true that I have my ways to hide my toys, but I can't hide you here, my friend."

"I know that, asshole. Just give me something and tell me where to go."

Sighing, Miroku got up and made his way into the storage room. When he came out, he was holding a black cloth in his hands. He indicated his friend to get in the storage room with his head, and put the cloth in his hands when the fugitive passed by him. "Wear this. It's all I got available now."

"What's this?"

"What does it look like? It's the universal uniform for the androids, you baka."

The silver-haired man did not look happy with that revelation, but got inside the room to change anyway. "Fuck this!"

Once his friend was inside, Miroku went back to his living room and took himself a drink from the cooler to clear his head. He had to get the hanyou to a safe place, and he had to be quick about it. Before he could swallow his first sip, a shrill sound was heard, indicating that he had visitors. Upon checking the security monitor, he saw that his precious customer he had been waiting to see for a long time finally arrived. He forgot about her when his notorious friend arrived. He cursed his luck. Now what? He didn't want to throw away the chance to see her. God knew when she would chose to come over again. So, after shouting the hanyou to hide somewhere, he pushed the button on the main control panel to open the front door… and there she stood in all her glory.

"Lady Sango."

"Miroku."

The beautiful woman extended her hand which he took eagerly. After kissing her hand, he looked at her face with a charming smile plastered on his own. "Always a pleasure."

"Likewise." The beautiful vixen got inside his humble place after throwing him a seductive smile.

It was only then he noticed the more simply dressed, but equally beautiful young girl accompanying his favorite customer. "Kagome! It's nice to see you again."

The girl smiled back at him supporting a deep blush. He knew she was uncomfortable for being in his place, most likely because of the purpose of their visit. She was so shy… too shy perhaps. But, then again… she was quite young to be involved in such matters. He followed after the girl to meet her mistress in the storage room. The older woman was already checking out the S-androids.

"See anything you like?"

"Well… not yet. Are these all new?"

"Most of them. The ones to your right are the new models."

"Really? What's different about them? All of them look real enough to me."

"The difference, my lady, is that the new models have organic tissues. They do not just look real, but they also feel real."

"Organic tissues? How do you keep them alive?"

"Simple. You need to give them food."

"Food? Like a real human?"

"Yes. They have an artificial digestive system that provides the tissues with the sustenance they need to stay alive."

She made her way towards him, her eyes fixed on his. He gasped when he felt her grope his ass, and heard her whispering voice in his ear. "Do they feel this real?"

"Y-yes. I would suppose so." Gods, this woman was going to kill him. AS if nothing happened, she smirked at him and continued to examine the new S-androids.

While her mistress was flirting with Miroku as usual, the young girl was walking among the S-androids. She never had one of those for herself for she had been too young for such stuff. Although she was turning eighteen next week, she was still an alien to such matters. Besides, couldn't afford one even if she wanted to. Being an orphan maid with no money, one couldn't even dream of having such luxuries. So she continued to pass the time she had to be in that place by disinterestedly looking at the S-androids. That is, until her eyes fell on a different one…

* * *

Inuyasha cursed when he heard Miroku shout for him to hide. It had to be the security. He thought he was a goner this time until he heard a woman's voice from the next room. Guessing that she was either one of Miroku's girls or a customer, he did the only thing he could to hide himself. He stood behind Miroku's stupid toys hoping nobody would come in his direction.

It was hard to keep himself from laughing aloud when the lecher tested his own medicine by being groped by the seductive woman. However, his amusement died quickly when he noticed the other girl was getting too close for his comfort and safety. He opted to stay motionless like the S-androids, praying that she would just have a look and pass by like she had been doing for the last ten minutes. He wasn't that lucky this time though. To his irritation, the girl got closer and stopped in front of him. He couldn't look back at her for his eyes were glued to a spot over her head, just like the S-androids, but he could feel her insistent gaze on him. _Shit! Just move on stupid girl!_ She didn't. She stayed where she was until the vixen came to stand next to her.

"What's this? This one looks much different than the others."

Seeing his friend become the focus of attention, Miroku tried to direct them to another part of the room. "Oh, I think you're more likely to find something that suits your tastes on the other side. This one's one of the new arrivals. It's made for those with different tastes… hence the ears, the hair, and all…"

"Hmm…" The older woman did not seem impressed and made to move on, but the girl did not move a muscle.

"You liked that, Kagome?"

At the mischievous smile on her mistress' face, the girl blushed profusely. "Umm…"

"Hey, girl. It's not a bad thing. If you liked it, just say so."

"I-I think it's b-beautiful."

"Is that so? I'll get it for you then."

"But Lady Sango!"

"What? I can't get a present for my dear little friend?"

"It's not that… I mean it is, but not just… I … I…" Getting sick of her own disability to talk, the girl decided to say it once and for all. "I'm not sure it would be right for me to have a S-android to use for… for… well, you know what it is for!"

The older woman laughed at the naivety of her little friend. "Oh, Kagome! Stop that! Be a little adventurous baby! There is nothing wrong with using a machine for whatever you want to use it as long as you don't hurt anybody. Besides, do you think you will be able to deal with a real man? Come on… Real men break your heart. They are not worth the pain, believe me." The girl looked thoughtful after hearing Sango's words, while Miroku looked crestfallen. He was up for a real challenge if she really thought like that.

When the silence prolonged, Lady Sango decided to try a new tactic. "Look, think of it as your birthday present."

"But it must be quite expensive…"

"Well, don't expect any presents from me for the next few years then."

The girl looked hopeful now, but it was obvious she still couldn't believe her mistress' intentions. "You're serious?"

Seeing that she had won the argument, Lady Sango gave her little friend a big smile. "Of course I am! Miroku!"

"Y-yes?"

"We're getting this one."

"Y-you are?"

"Yes. Is there a problem, Miroku?"

Miroku seemed to think for a second, and then he looked at his friend's horrified eyes. "No… no problem at all. I'm sure you'll be pleased with your choice and take good care of this unique S-android."

"Good. Ready it. We'll be waiting by the door."

Once the women were out the door, the enraged hanyou-turned-pseudo-S-android caught his friend by the collar of his shirt. "What the hell do you think you're doing, asshole!"

Despite being cut out of oxygen, Miroku managed to give an answer. "I2m saving your ass, you idiot. That woman is a senator's daughter. Her house will be one of the safest places for you to hide." When the hanyou let him go after hearing his reason for selling him like a stupid toy, Miroku continued. "You just need to play the S-android for a while, that's all."

"Shit! How am I supposed to pull that off?!"

"I'm sure you'll manage. Come on, you played more difficult roles than this one…" He lightly smacked his hanyou friend on the shoulder, and gave him a big grin. "Besides, think of the other benefits, my friend. You're going to be the S-A-N-D-R-O-I-D of a lovely maiden…"

The hanyou snorted at his friend's grinning face. _Always the lecher…_ He didn't like this idea. It was too risky. However, he would admit that it was the best option he had for now… not to mention that he did not have any other options in that moment. "Fuck this… Alright, I'll do it. As if I have another choice…"

"Okay. Just remember to keep your emotions from showing on your face and be obedient all the time." When the hanyou rolled his eyes, Miroku felt the need to repeat himself. "I said obedient, Inuyasha… all the time."

"Okay, okay! I get it already!"

"Well then, let's not make your lovely mistress wait anymore." With a smirk, he made his way to the living room, his hanyou friend in tow. He stopped in front of Kagome and motioned the pseudo-S-android to stop too. "My dear Kagome, this is Yash. I hope you'll be pleased with his services." Satisfied for making the poor girl squirm under his amused gaze, he turned to his friend who had been adamantly refusing to look at the young girl. "Yash. Meet your new mistress, Kagome."

Having no choice but to obey, he grudgingly lowered his eyes to look at the girl's blushing face… and froze. _What the…?_ The girl was beautiful… very beautiful. But what was striking was the resemblance she had with the bitch he robbed a few days ago… the reason of him being here in the first place.

Luckily, he managed to compose himself before he did or say something stupid, and took the girl's hand. He bent down never loosing eye contact with the girl and kissed her knuckles. "My lady." When he was standing again, he saw the blush on her cheeks now covered her whole face. _Gods… How shy can this girl get? Stupid, stupid…_

Before the girl could say anything, they heard a loud bang at the door. When they realized it was the security Lady Sango began to panic. It was obvious she did not want to be caught in this place. He could only guess how much trouble she would get her father in if it was found out that she was a fan of illegal S-androids.

Always the one ready for such emergencies, Miroku led them to a secret door at the back of his storage room, and went back to hide his precious S-androids in whatever way he usually did, before he led the security in. In seconds, they were out of the building and in Sango's ship, which she called to meet her in the alley at the back of the building. They hurriedly took off, hoping that they would not be noticed in the everyday commotion of the city.

End of Chapter 1


	2. Warming Up

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

**Author's Note:** Thanks to those who took the time to review my story. Each and every one of them motivated me more to finish and upload this chapter. I hope you will like this one too!

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter 2: ****Warming Up**

He jumped to his feet from his place on the floor. Not knowing what woke him up, he frantically checked his surroundings for any sign of danger. After a few seconds, his disorientation was gone, and he finally realized where he was. _Yeah… the girl's room… _She had brought him to this small room the moment they had arrived at the house. She had panicked so much that he would be seen by someone, she had tripped on her own feet and nearly fallen down at least three times during the two minutes it had taken them to reach the room… and she actually had fallen down the one time he had failed to catch her. _Keh! Stupid girl…_ Everything she did since their meeting only strengthened his initial impression of her: she was an idiot… definitely. _At least she is a beautiful one…_ That thought led his eyes to its object, sprawled on the single bed that took almost one fourth of the room, eyes closed in deep slumber.

While she had seemed to have a problem with meeting his eyes, he found it to be in his advantage, and took every chance he got to examine her face. He was thrown away with her resemblance to the bitch he robbed at the first look, but the more he looked at her, the less she seemed to be a look-alike. They had the same hair color and similar face structures, but that was all. Against the bitch's hardened expression, this girl had soft features with full lips begging to be kissed, instead of being pulled up in a tight line in displeasure, and impossibly large sapphire eyes shining with innocence and screaming fragility, instead of a dead grey as cold as a winter night. No… she was so different, so lively… Even her hair was full of life with its luscious curves, inviting his hands to a sinful dance in its softness. _And Gods, that scent…_ It was like nothing he smelled before. He took a deep breath, filling his nostrils with the floral sent wafting from the girl, and getting light headed from its intensiveness in the process. He had not realized how she smelled until he entered this room, for his attention had been caught by other things like how she had looked, or whether there had been someone on their tail. The moment he passed through the door, he was blown away by the first wave of her scent that dominated the air in the small room. Most probably, that scent was what made him fall asleep tonight, because otherwise he wouldn't have been able to sleep in a place he had never been before with armed men looking for him everywhere. It was so soothing, so alluring, so… so… _intoxicating._ Yes, that was the best word to describe its effect on him, for the moment he finished that thought, he realized that he was now standing next to the girl's bed, leaning towards her small frame to take a better whiff off her, without even knowing how he got there. _Fuck! What the hell?!_ Swearing in his head for his weakness, he took a step back not to wake the girl who was lying on her left side with her back to him, as well as to strain his own reaction to this insignificant, small human girl.

Just as he was thinking about going back to his corner for both their safety, the girl rolled onto her stomach, her head turned in his direction, presenting him another opportunity to see her lovely face. As pleasing as it was to look at her beauty, it also ignited unwelcome emotions of fear and concern in the depths of his being. It was not the danger of falling for the girl that scared him. Yes, he almost fell for the bitch's cold beauty, but he learned his lesson, and he was not one to make the same mistake twice. It wasn't also the fact that he had to be a perfect robot built for providing its owner with mind-blowing sex. _Oh, no… not that…_ He snickered at that thought. He knew he would have no problems with that aspect of his role. No, it wasn't that either… In fact, he was not scared for himself at all. He was scared for her. She was too young, too beautiful, and too innocent to be involved in such dangerous games… to be so close to someone like him. Yes, strange, but true… the notorious hanyou who never gave a fuck about what happened to anyone except himself, let alone a woman he literally fucked, was concerned for some stupid girl he knew for less than half a day. _Fuck!_ He shook his head as if to distract it from the unwanted direction his thoughts took, but failed in his attempt. For the first time in his life, he felt the deep urge to protect someone, someone other than himself, from the dangers of the outside world, and most importantly, from himself.

He couldn't suppress the irritated growl at the emotions that invaded his normally uncaring heart. At the sound he involuntarily made, the girl moved again… causing the thin blanket that had been hiding her small body from his gaze… and presented his eyes a sight he had not been expecting to see, at least not tonight. Her already short nightgown had slipped up to her waist, exposing her scarcely clothed bottom to the night air. That put a stop to his thoughts about not wanting to hurt the girl's feelings by fooling around with her like that. _Keh! What do I care? _He tilted his head to one side to get a better view of the exposed skin. He smirked to himself, liking what he saw. Other parts of his anatomy must have liked the view too, if the twitch in his groins meant anything. _I'll fuck her, alright…_ His hand hovered over her perfectly round bottom, dangerously close to touching her silky skin. He stopped in his advances to look at the blissfully asleep girl's face at the sound of a small sigh that escaped her parted lips. _…just not tonight._ Without taking his eyes off her face, he slowly put his fingers on the edge of the thin blanket, and carefully pulled it back to cover her small frame.

* * *

She opened her eyes to the first rays of the sun peeking from the small window on the wall to her right. She felt completely refreshed after a long night's sleep in her comfortable bed. She was a maid, that was true, but she was perhaps one of the luckiest maids around. Well, she was the only human maid around, and the others were androids with no need for accommodations or food, but whatever… She was lucky, because she was being taken care of by a kind and wealthy family. She had been a little girl when she first came to this house with her grandfather, the only member of her family she could remember. He had worked as a gardener in this house for a few years until the day he died. That day, she lost the only family she had known forever, and was left alone with no one to take care of her and no money to survive on her own. The Tajiya's, however, did not send her away like she feared they would. Instead, they let her stay with them like she had been doing for the past few years. Although she worked hard to earn what was given to her, she found it impossible to pay for their kindness. They have given her a home, food, clothes… she even had her own room. Even though the room was small and scarcely furnished, it was more than she would like to have for herself, and the best part of it was this soft bed she was now stretching upon like a content cat. She decided she would want nothing more for the rest of her life while she raised her arms up, letting her finger tips touch the wall behind her bed. _Well… maybe a husband and children?_ That unexpected thought reminded her that the closest thing to a husband she would probably ever get was in the room as well.

She immediately tensed, and shot up to a sitting position, her eyes landing on the corner where she had last seen her brand new S-android before falling asleep. Her eyes softened and a small smile graced her lips at the sight that met her eyes. There he was, still sitting cross-legged on the floor, his back supported by the wall behind him, his arms crossed over his broad chest, his head bent down, long silver bangs curtaining his eyes. He was sitting so still, she almost jumped when one of his ears moved. She had to suppress her giggle when the same ear flicked again. Although she did not deactivate him last night, it was obvious that he was in sleeping mode. That was okay, she decided, seeing that adorable ear move again. At least he did not seem like a lifeless puppet this way. Slowly, careful not to get him out of sleeping mode, she got off the bed and made her way towards the oblivious S-android to kneel in front of him.

She tilted her head to one side in order to see the face that took her breath away yesterday. She hasn't been able to look at him in the face after the rather perverted comment Miroku had made right before they had left his place. Now was her chance to examine his features without blushing under his intense stare, but it was impossible to see anything because of the thick curtain that was his bangs.

Giving up, she decided to pay attention to his other features that fascinated her. Reaching out with her left hand, she softly touched the tip of his right ear. Upon contact, the said appendage flicked once, moving away from her touch. Amused by the reaction she got, she touched it again, and again it moved away, causing her smile to get even bigger. _Just like a real puppy!_ When she moved her hand to touch it once more, the mischievous ear moved away even before her fingers could contact with the furry appendage. _Oh, you think you're so clever? We'll see who is better when I'm done with you. Now, come to mommy…_ Not one to back down easily, she attacked the ear with speed, and caught the poor appendage between her two fingers. Not letting it escape her clutches, she began rubbing it softly from tip to base. _So soft…_ Lost in the moment, she scratched its base like she would do to a real puppy, and missed the fact that the ear stopped trying to get away and instead was leaning towards her hand now.

Now that it was out of her system, her attention moved to the silky strands of silvery-white hair flowing under her fingers. Unable to resist the temptation, she traced her fingers down the long strands, marveling at their impossible softness. _No wonder you're not real. No one can have such beautiful hair, right?_ Moving down, her fingers caught something in his hair… something small and hard. _This is… definitely not hair._ Taking the alien substance out of the otherwise perfect hair carefully, she saw that it was some kind of metal. Curious, she began to check the rest of his hair, and came out with more small pieces of different materials tangled in the thick mess. _Gods… one would think they would clean you up after production. Maybe it happened during the delivery though…_ She looked back at his face with pity in her eyes. She felt sad and angry at the same time, thinking about possible ways that would cause him to get into so much dirt.

He was a masterpiece, even more beautiful than those ancient statues of human figures that were stored under several layers of protective shields, too valuable to be exposed to the naked eyes of their visitors. No, for her, he was more valuable than those stupid pieces of stones. He was hers, and he should have been treated with care. When she spoke, her voice was a trembling whisper, giving away her sadness, rather than the anger. "Poor baby… What have you been through before you came to me?" Sighing, she cupped his cheeks with both hands, and softly kissed the top of his head right between his ears, and whispered… "Don't worry… I'll take good care of you." Letting go of the S-android, she stood up and hurried to the small bathroom to take a quick shower so that she would have sometime to care for her precious S-android before she had to start her daily duties. In her hurry, she completely missed the wide-eyed look the so called S-android was giving her back, and the hand that replaced hers on his cheek.

* * *

He looked after the girl with something between confusion and awe in his eyes. He could still feel the warmth her soft fingers left on his skin and the remnants of the pressure of her rosy lips on his head. Fire spread through his whole body, concentrating on his face. Wait a minute… was he blushing? _Shit!_

He had woken up, again, when he had heard the girl move in her bed. This time, though, he had known what, or rather who, had woken him up, so he had kept himself still instead of jumping up, thus had avoided evoking unnecessary suspicion from the girl. He hadn't been able to stop the reflexive motions his right ear had made at the sounds coming from the girl though. _When did the stupid thing ever listen to me?_ Never. Yes, that stupid ear was definitely cursed. Hoping that the girl had not noticed the strange actions going on over his head, he had listened intently to decipher the girl's movements.

The cursed ear had twitched again the moment he had heard her get off the bed. To his irritation, she had walked towards him. He had tensed when he had felt her warm breath so close to his face. All the while, his right ear had never stopped twitching. _Stupid, stupid… _He had almost gasped aloud when he had felt her fingers on his ear. _So she __**had**__ noticed the independent ear…_ This time, he had agreed with his ear when it had moved away from the stupid girl's too-brave-for-its-own-good hand. _Oh, no you won't… No one touches my ears and lives to tell about it._

Obviously, the escape of his ear had turned out to be an entertaining game for the girl for she kept on touching it, forcing it to move away again. Just what did this girl think he was? If any part of his anatomy was for her to play, it definitely was not his ear. _Stop it! I'm not a puppy, dammit!_ He had almost sworn aloud when she caught the annoyed appendage in her fingers. His anger had evaporated, however, as those once annoying fingers had started applying a soothing massage to his cursed ear. Cursed? Maybe he had to call it 'blessed' from that moment on. _Whoa… that feels… good._ Her soft touch had been like nothing he had experienced before. _A little to the left… to the left! Yeah, that's it… just like that…_

Just as he had been about to emit a pleased growl, she had stopped the rubbing motions of her magical fingers. _No, no, no… don't stop!_ Despite his silent pleas, her attention had obviously been diverted to his hair, if the feeling of it being combed had meant anything. Then she had stopped abruptly, and had taken something off his hair. _Shit! That must have stuck in my hair during the crash. Fuck this! What will she think?_ When she had started searching his hair to find more of that stuff, panic had begun to well up in him. Just when it had become unbearable to wait for her judgment, she had surprised him by whispering the words he hadn't been expecting to hear. "Poor baby… What have you been through before you came to me?"

_What the…_ He had been appalled by the sadness in her voice. _She is concerned… for __**me**__?_ The next thing she had done left him in his current dreamy state. He had almost whimpered in need when she had drawn back from the kiss, but the promise she had whispered in his ear alleviated the feeling of loss her departure left in him. _**She **__will take care of __**me**__?_ It was maybe the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard… an innocent, powerless girl taking care of a notorious criminal wanted in most of the solar systems in the galaxy? _Keh!_ Yeah, it was definitely the most ridiculous thing he had heard in the twenty-five years he had lived, but it was also the nicest one… Now, watching the automatic bathroom door close, hiding her beautiful figure from his sight, he found himself secretly wishing it would not take too long for her to come back.

* * *

Getting out of the shower, she impatiently stood under the instant drier, and in seconds, was dressed and out of the small bathroom. In her hurry, she tripped on her own feet and almost fell down on her face… almost. She found her face plastered to a soft black cloth, instead of the hard grey floor. Eyes wide, she put her hands to the hard surface covered with soft fabric to push herself away, and discovered that hard surface to be a nicely sculptured chest. With the help of a gentle push from two strong hands on her shoulders, she managed to steady herself, and came face to face with her precious S-android. _Gods, this is turning into a habit already!_ It hasn't been one day since they bought him for her, and he already rescued her from meeting the ground because of her clumsy feet at least three times… maybe four. He was turning out to be quite the hero, this beautiful S-android of hers. _Yeah… my hero…_ Realizing she had been looking at his face quite blatantly and probably with stars in her eyes for the last few seconds, she blushed and ducked her head down, mumbling a small 'thank you' in the process.

"Is mistress alright?"

Her head shot up, hearing his voice for the first time since they left Miroku's place. His head was tilted to one side, both his ears turned towards her, making him look like a curious puppy. The innocent expression on his face helped her relax, and for the first time since they met, she managed to stop blushing. "Yeah, I'm okay… Y-yash." _Well, that wasn't difficult, was it? No need for being nervous all the time… I mean, look at him… He is not a real man. He won't judge me for my clumsiness, for my lack of beauty and grace, or for my poorness. Besides, he's already mine, and nothing will change that… nothing._ That final thought chased away the rest of her uneasiness, and she flashed him a brilliant smile.

"Hey, Yash… Umm… I noticed you need to get cleaned up…"

She was obviously having trouble to get the words out. Now that she finally relaxed around him, he did not want her to go back to the state where she couldn't utter a word to him without blushing. So he decided to help her out. "Does mistress want me to shower?"

"Yes!" She looked relieved for not having to complete her sentence. "You go ahead and take a shower. I'll prepare the tub for you. I'll need to clean your hair myself. I mean… it's quite messy right now…"

"As you wish, mistress." He passed by her and headed towards the bathroom. He stopped and turned to face her when he heard her talk again.

"Wait… You can have a bath, right? I mean, with water and all?"

"Yes, mistress. How else am I supposed to get cleaned?"

"Yeah, right." Feeling stupid, she waved him off to go on. _Did he just make me look more stupid than I did myself? Well… How am I supposed to know that? As if I had a dozen S-androids before…_

Grumbling to herself, she made her way to the bathroom after hearing the shower on. She shook her head seeing his clothes lay in front of the cabin he was currently showering in. Well, what did I expect? A S-android is not made for housework, after all. Besides, alive or not, he's still a man. She took the discarded cloth to place it in the washer/dryer embedded in the wall next to the door. When she picked up the clothes, a small 'clink' noise took her attention to the floor. There, right next to her feet, lay a strange necklace of sorts. She took it with interest, highly surprised that her S-android had such jewelry with him. _It looks strange though… with those fangs on it… wait a minute why would he carry jewelry with him? Maybe it's not jewelry at all. Miroku said he had been built for people with different tastes… Gods! It must be a collar!_ Her eyes widened in horror at that thought. Angrily, she put the collar onto the counter top, all the while thinking about how sick one had to be in order to enjoy collaring others. _He might keep it, but he won't need it as long as I live._

Still agitated, she started the water to fill the tub before putting the used cloth into the washer/dryer. Seeing the tub full, she added some shampoo in it and mixed the water with her hand, causing some to splash onto the floor. Satisfied with the amount of bubble covering the surface of the water, she turned back to tell the S-android that he could get in the tub after she was out the door and then call her back in to wash his hair. Although she opened her mouth to do so, the words never left her, for she was appalled at the sight that met her once virgin eyes.

While she was busy with the tub, she must have missed the stopping of the shower sounds and the opening of the cabin door, for a very wet S-android was standing right in front of her in all his naked glory. She had to close her mouth to gulp the lump in her throat while her eyes followed the advance of a water droplet from his throat, through his perfectly sculptured chest, to his abs, and then… She let out a frightened squeak and reflexively took a step back to get away from the embarrassing sight. Unfortunately, she stepped on the wet floor on which she had splashed water a minute ago, and found herself falling backwards right into the tub.

* * *

Inuyasha watched the girl's reaction with amusement. It hadn't been intentional. He just hadn't realized she had been in the bathroom because of the loud sound of the shower in his ears, as well as the smell of shampoo mixed with steam clogging his nose. He had almost laughed aloud when her open-mouthed expression changed to one of horror when her eyes traveled too much to the south. Then, as usual, the clumsy girl did her thing, and fell into the tub. For a few seconds he watched her struggle to get out of the tub, her legs chirping in the air, the rest of her body buried under water. _How did she manage to do that?!_ Seeing that she would kill herself sooner rather than later if she was left to fend for herself, he shook his head, and went over to the tub to play the hero once again. Her legs in the air proved to be dangerous by almost hitting him in the groin, so he did the only thing he could to get a hold of her: he got into the tub. Kneeling, he caught her waist and hauled her out of the water in one swift motion.

Finally finding something to hold on to, the frightened girl literally climbed onto him, straddling his legs in the process. She hugged his shoulders for dear life while she coughed out the water she had swallowed, her face buried in his neck.

He stroked her back to help her get rid of the unwanted water in her system as he returned her hug with equal vehemence. He had not realized the seriousness of the situation at first, but seeing her like this, he now knew that he had almost let her die. _Fuck me! Why didn't I act earlier?_

While he beat himself down for having amused himself with her struggle for life, the girl's breathing evened out, and she stopped coughing, though she stayed where she was for a few minutes more. Finally, she raised her head to meet his concerned gaze with something akin to amusement and embarrassment in hers.

"I'm so clumsy, aren't I?" With that she started giggling madly, which turned to a full blown laughter. He looked at her face which was quite close to his in surprise. _What the hell?!_ She wasn't supposed to be laughing her ass off, was she? _She had almost drowned five minutes ago, for god's sake!_

Between her fits of laughter she managed to utter a few more words which made him smile as well. "I'm sorry… I-I don't know how I survived all these years without you around!"

This little human was something else, wasn't she? Yes, she almost drowned… almost. But she was alive, and what was there not to laugh? Looking at her beautiful laughing face, he found himself laughing with her, and when their eyes met, he couldn't stop himself from his next move. Without thinking, he dipped his head down to capture those rosy lips that had been too inviting for their own good with his hungry ones.

She froze at the first contact, making his heart jump to his throat in fear that she would reject him. _Gods, please… I'll die if I don't kiss her right now…_ To his relief and joy, she closed her eyes and moved her lips against his. Encouraged by her acceptance, he began slowly moving his lips on hers, softly sucking them once in a while. When she reciprocated his actions, he took another step by licking her upper lip, trying to get her to open up for him. He didn't have to wait long for that though, for she granted his wish with a small moan escaping her lips. Not wasting a second, he entered her mouth, eager to be inside her in one way or the other. Heat erupted in his groin when he had his first real taste of her, causing him to buck his hips up towards her center, which was plastered towards his erection for she had been still straddling him.

That small motion brought the end of the moment, though. Breaking off the kiss, she pushed herself away from him to the other end of the tub. _What the…_ In his confused state, he realized she started trembling, her arms crossed across her chest in a protective manner, her eyes refusing to look at his face. _Why is she trembling? Wait a minute… Fuck!_ She was afraid, that was obvious. The question was, was she afraid of him, or was she afraid of what he had been about to do to her?

"Is mistress afraid of Yash?"

Still shielding herself with her arms, she raised her eyes to meet his questioning gaze. "No… No, I'm not."

He did not sense that she was lying, but those softly uttered words still reflected her fear. _Just to make sure…_ "Then mistress does not like Yash, does she?"

Eyes widening in panic, she made to move towards him. "NO!" Realizing what she was about to do, she leaned back to the edge of the tub slowly. "No. Never." She lowered her eyes to the bubbles dancing around her wet clothes. Just as he thought she was drawn into her own world, she talked in a whispering tone. "Never ever think that, okay?"

_Figures… She's afraid of sex, isn't she…_ "Mistress should know that Yash would not perform his services unless she wanted him to."

That took her attention to his face again. "W-what?"

"Mistress is uncomfortable. Yash will not touch her unless she asks him to."

She searched his face for a minute, obviously trying to decide whether to trust what he said, causing him to get nervous under her stare. _Honestly, what's there to think about it? S-androids are not programmed to lie, are they?_ Seemingly convinced, she visibly relaxed, and gave him a small smile. "O-okay."

Still smiling, she signed him to turn around with her hand. "Since we're both already in the tub, let's get this over with. I'll have to leave for work soon."

He did her bidding, and turned his back to her. Holding his hair, she gently pulled his head towards her lap, and started combing his hair with her fingers. The second she touched his hair, he had to stop the annoyed growl that welled up in his chest. _Great… Just when I was starting to like her, she has to go and treat me like a doll, doesn't she?_ He didn't need to suppress himself for long though, for when she started massaging his head, all traces of his annoyance left him in the blink of an eye. _Now this, I could get used to…_ It was hard not to fall asleep with those blessed fingers working their magic on him, and the source of that soothing scent so close to his nose. As if those weren't enough, she started humming a nice song with an angelic voice he hadn't realized before that she had possessed. Unfortunately, his small heaven was crashed sooner than he would have liked with her declaring that she was finished. Grudgingly, he sat up, letting her get out of the tub and of the bathroom. She left his cleaned clothes on the counter before leaving. After the door was closed behind her, he got up and dried himself. Putting on the black overalls, he made his way towards the door, but then turned back to look at the counter top for something he thought he saw. Obviously, he really did see it. His necklace made of dark beads and creamy fangs lay on the counter. _It must have fallen out of my pocket when she took my clothes._ Shaking his head to himself for forgetting to put it in a secure place before, he took the precious necklace and carefully hid it in one of his inner pockets. He was lucky that she did not ask him about it already. He wouldn't know what to say. _I can't tell her what it is really for, now can I? "Hey baby, it's just a powerful concealment spell that hides my aura, and makes me look and smell like a human, that's it… It comes in very handy in my line of work, you know." Keh! No way!_

When he entered the room, she had already changed her clothes, and was in the process of braiding her hair. She looked at him with that adorable smile plastered on her face. _Wait a minute… Since when did that smile promoted to being adorable from being idiotic?_

"I need to leave now. There is food in the cooler next to the table." She indicated the small metallic door on the wall. While he watched her move around, he couldn't help but think that she looked even younger with her hair braided like that. "You can help yourself whenever you feel like you need to eat, okay?" Although she went on showing him other things in the room, he stopped listening to her the moment his eyes traveled to south enough to get acquainted with the short skirt of her baby blue uniform, and following that, her long and shapely legs. _Shame on you Inuyasha…How come you haven't seen those before?_

"Ummm… Yash?" Shaking his head he forced his eyes to focus on her face. Seeing that she was waiting him to answer her, he talked in a monotone voice.

"Mistress worries too much. Yash is perfectly capable of taking care of himself."

"That's good to hear… and, Yash?"

"Yes, mistress?"

"Could you not talk about yourself in third person? It sounds strange."

"I will do as you wish, my mistress."

"One more thing… Could you stop calling me mistress? I don't like what it entails."

_She doesn't? I would have thought these S-adroid fans liked the whole master-slave thing. But then again… _"What would mistress have me call her?"

"Kagome." With that she smiled, showing her pearly white teeth, and turned to leave. In the last second, she turned back and hurried towards where he stood. Curious, he watched her, wondering what was on her mind this time. She raised her hand and quickly tweaked his ear before it had a chance to escape her advances. Giggling, she turned and ran out of the room, leaving an open-mouthed hanyou behind, confused about whether to curse her for treating him like a puppy, or to laugh at her childish antics.

* * *

"Fuck them all to seventh hell!" Blue eyes flashed with unsuppressed anger, and the blow from the dark haired man's fist left the screen with an ugly crack on it.

"Will you just relax?!"

"No, I won't!" His long ponytail came to rest over his shoulder when his head shot up to glare daggers at the girl with long brown hair. "When will those bastards let us do our job?! We all know that they won't be able to find the asshole!"

"Tell this to those bastards, and we'll never have the permit to land, you jackass!" Her normally laughing brown eyes glared back at him with equal ferocity. "Now, shut up!"

Cursing under his breath, the man left the board of the spaceship, and headed towards the training room where no one would care what he broke into pieces. It wasn't like he really cared about the guy he was searching for. No. It was the fact that he was forced to hold himself back that angered him. He knew he would sniff out the bastard as if he had put him in the hole he had crawled into with his own hands. But no… the stupid senate wouldn't let alien troops on their stupid planet unless there was no other choice. So he had to wait… and the wait was making him insane. Not to mention that his carefully built world was probably falling into pieces right now because of the shit-head that dared to steal the jewel. He would find that son of a bitch, alright… _And when I do… He'll curse the day he had been born._


	3. Temptation

**Disclaimer:**I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the kind reviews! I want to say that I'm sorry for the late update. I'll try to update this story more frequently from now on.

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter ****3: Temptation**

He restrained himself from punching the nearest wall. Turning back from the door, he continued pacing the small room like he had been doing for the last two hours. It didn't help much to alleviate his nerves, for he had to turn back after every fifth step due to the constricted space. He was itching to have some action so that his muscles would stop screaming at him. He's been scooped up in this small room for the last week. Not being used to staying in one place for such a long time doing nothing, he felt himself like a prisoner. _A whole fucking week… Dammit!_

It was the same routine everyday. The girl, Kagome, would leave in the morning and would not return until after dinner time. He would brood in the room as to how to find a way to contact Miroku. He guessed that Sango lady had a secure line in her room. He tried to get to her room too many times to count; however, there were always someone around in this damned place. As a result, he would sneak out of the room and into the halls at least five times a day, only to hurry back not be sighted by one of the stupid robots or the officers that filled almost every floor in the building. Just when he would reach the point where he wouldn't care if he was found out or not, Kagome would come back, her face tired, but still smiling. They would have dinner together; all the while she would talk about her day with unnecessary enthusiasm. _Keh! The stupid girl must have the dullest life one can ever live. Honestly, what's there to be so fucking cheerful about?!_

He thought it to be strange at first that the girl would talk to him non-stop about anything and everything as if he was not a dumb robot, but a real person… as if he was her friend. No need to mention that he had been irritated by her constant chattering, for he wasn't used to, nor did he care about being around others for a long time. He was a loner for god's sake! However, if he had to be honest with himself, he would admit that he started to like having her around… only in the tiniest bit, of course.

Maybe that was why he did not resist when she wanted to play poker with him last night. He had to admit that it wasn't so bad. Her eyes would light up whenever her hand was strong, but she would scrunch her nose and wrinkle her eyebrows to hide it. He actually liked that face she made, thought it was cute. His favorite, however, was when she was bluffing. She would chew her bottom lip mercilessly when she thought he was not looking. Luckily, she did not know how wrong she was. Watching her, he found it hard to resist getting up and biting that abused flesh himself. Not to mention that every time she did that, he could not stop the images of her lips and teeth playing with him rather than with each other, making it quite uncomfortable for him to sit still in his constricting clothes.

And then there was the habit of tweaking his ears she got used to doing since that first day after the incident in the bathroom. If only she would stop doing that… but, no… she wouldn't do that, would she? In fact, as if to mock him, she went even further and started combing his hair and stroking his ears for hours every night after dinner. Now, that irritated him even more. It wasn't because he didn't like it, mind you. It was because he liked it a little too much. Her soft touch did things to him he wouldn't dare even dream of. He growled at the memory of the agony he felt the last time she played with his ears after making him lay between her legs on her bed, his head resting on her stomach while she bent her head down to get a better look at his face on her half-sitting position, causing silky strands of her hair caress his cheeks. Unknown to the girl, under the mask of sleep he wore, he had been fighting hard to stop himself from turning back and shredding her clothes out of his way before fucking her senseless.

_Dammit! As if her mere presence wasn't tempting enough…_ If the idiot knew what was going through his mind while she obliviously worked him up every night, he was sure she would run away without looking back. And that was the real problem… He never had to hold himself back when he wanted a woman, but with her, he had no other options but to wait for her to make the first move, and that made him want her even more… more than anything he had ever wanted. He had hoped that she would let him fuck her once she was comfortable around him. _Keh! As if! Just why in the seven hells would someone buy a S-android if they won't fuck the hell out of it?! Stupid… stupid…_ But then again, that question was partially answered last night, wasn't it?

Last night, he had woken up panting, his forehead covered in sweat. It had been the same nightmare again… the one he had been suffering from time to time since his childhood. Everything had been covered in flames. He had heard a woman screaming from the other room. He had run to answer her pleas for help, but as always, a dark figure had blocked his way, hovering over his childish form. The next scream he had heard had been the end of his nightmare. Although he had guessed who the woman had been, he had never been able to reach her.

Once the horror of the nightmare had subsided, he had leaned his head back to the wall and breathed deeply, getting ready to fall back asleep. That had been when he had heard it. His over-sensitive ears had picked up the almost inaudible whimpers coming from the girl. He had stood up to see her balled up in her bed, her small body shaking violently. Afraid that she had gotten sick, he had rushed to her side, and sitting next to her on the bed, put his hand to her forehead to feel her temperature. He had been expecting to find her burning up, but the girl was surprisingly cold.

The moment he had taken his hand back, she had shot up in the bed with a cry of 'no,' scaring the shit out of him. Seeing him sitting right next to her, she had literally thrown herself into his arms under his shocked gaze. Not knowing what to do, he had stayed there frozen and let her hug him for a few seconds before enveloping her small body with his strong arms and letting her feel the safety of his embrace. She had obviously had a nightmare of her own, and he had known what one needed in those times. Oh, how he had wished he had had someone to hold him like that. Ironically, it felt good to be giving for once.

He still didn't know if it had worked or not but it definitely had done something for she had buried her face into the crook of his neck and cried to her heart's content. Once her crying had subsided, she had thanked him for being there, before telling him about what had troubled her so. He had been surprised to hear that her nightmare had been so similar to his with flames and screams, and even more so when she had told him about her past.

She had lost her family long ago just like him, and just like him, she had no one to hold onto since then. The only difference was that she had been fortunate enough to be taken in by the Tajiya's, while he had been left alone to fend for himself and ended up as a criminal. He still thanked the gods for that small difference in their fates; for he didn't think she would have survived otherwise. While he had pondered about their similarities, she fell asleep in his arms, her hands latched onto his shirt. When she didn't let him go, he had to lie down next to her and went to sleep in her bed, with her still holding onto his shirt, her head resting on his chest, his arms holding her safely.

That night he had understood that the poor girl had lived among a family without having one herself. That was why she acted that way towards him. Whether he liked it or not, she had chosen him to be her new family.

That realization brought new questions to his mind. He felt this unwelcome urge to protect her since day one, but now, it was more than just an urge… On the other hand, he desperately wanted to have his way with her. As a result, every time little miss temptation walked around in that skimpy dress of hers, he was torn in between jumping on her and running away as fast as he could. Of course, given his situation, neither of those was an option he could take.

_Keh! Why would I even care?!_ He wasn't the most honorable man around. After all, he was a criminal… a thief. However, he had never been one to harm those weaker than himself. Was that because at some level he had a sense of honor? _More likely because those weaklings never had something that I wanted._ Well, perhaps that was the reason. But this time it was different. This 'weakling' had something he wanted badly… _Damn! Why am I arguing with myself? I might be a lot of things, but I am definitely not a rapist. So unless she wants it, which is unlikely, my hands are bound, dammit! It is obvious that the stupid girl has anything but sex in her mind when it comes to me. Admit it… I'm just a fancy little toy she had never had a chance to play with before._

Sighing, he walked towards his corner and sat down before crossing his arms and legs in his usual sulking position. At the unpleasant sound coming from his stomach he realized that it was past dinner time. _She's late. What the hell is taking her so long?_Just as he was pondering on whether to get out and check on the girl, and maybe try his chance to contact the lecher once more, the door opened to reveal an exhausted looking Kagome.

As soon as her dulled eyes landed on the S-android, her face brightened with a small smile adorning her lips. "Hi, Yash!" She made her way towards the S-android and knelt in front of him. "I'm sorry I'm late today. Have you eaten already?"

Before he could open his mouth, his stomach gave another loud cry. Chuckling, she reached her hand to stroke his ear. "Well, I guess that answers my question. Do you mind waiting for a few more minutes? I'll just take a quick shower and then we can eat."

Fighting the blush that threatened to form on his face, he nodded dumbly and watched her disappear behind the bathroom door. He was still cursing his stomach under his breath when she reappeared, dressed in white. Her fresh scent washed over his senses as she passed by him, not without tweaking his ear in the process. As usual, that enticing scent of hers combined with the short nightgown she wore brought forth a different kind of hunger in him, almost making him forget about his stomach.

He watched her heat their dinner and prepare the table, her short skirt hiking up to reveal more of the silky skin of her legs whenever she bent down as she worked. In the end, he had to lick his lips since they dried up unbearably as he watched the show, only to hear her giggle softly. "Geez, Yash. If I had known you were so hungry, I would have prepared your food before showering. Well, come on already. Dinner is served."

Hiding the smirk that formed on his lips at her naivety, he took his seat at the table. After swallowing her first bite, she looked at him, her eyes unusually soft even for her. "You know, if you want something you should just say it. I wouldn't refuse you anything if I can help it."

_What?!_ For a second, he really thought she was talking about something else, and gave her an incredulous look. Just as he opened his mouth to tell her that she did refuse him the first time he tried something, realization downed on him, causing his eyes to widen considerably. _Damn! She's talking about the food, idiot! _Luckily, he managed to stop the words from coming out and saved himself the embarrassment. He couldn't resist giving her a meaningful stare though, his one eyebrow raised, his eyes asking the question he did not dare voice at the moment. _What if you can't help it? _As she looked at him in confusion, he relaxed his features and turned his attention back to his food, before murmuring the most appropriate answer he could think of. "Next time I'll say."

"Good." Smiling, she took another bite before sighing tiredly. "Gods, I'm so exhausted, I don't even have the energy to eat." His mouth full, he raised his eyebrows at her in question. She did look tired when she came back this evening. Swallowing, he asked her about what he had been wondering before she came back and caused all his thoughts to focus on other things. "Why were you late today?"

"I was working on Lady Sango's new dress. It has to be ready for tomorrow night, but luckily, it is almost done."

"Tomorrow night?"

"Yes. Oh! I haven't told you about that, have I? Silly me. There is a gathering tomorrow night. A kind of ball, I guess. All the senators, most of the officers and their families will be there. I have to go, too, to wait on Lady Sango."

_A ball, huh? And almost everyone will be there… _His eyes widened a fraction at the realization of what this ball implied for him._Finally! A chance for me to call Miroku. It sounds too good to be true._

Mistaking the look on his face as fear, the girl chuckled softly before talking to attenuate his 'fear,' and almost causing him to choke on his food by doing so. "Don't worry, I'll feed you before I leave, okay?"

* * *

"So?"

"So what?"

After all the trouble he had gone through to make this call, the stupid lecher actually had the nerve to play word games with him. He had to wait restlessly until the girl left after giving him his dinner, and even some more to make sure that everyone was gone. Although he had no trouble in finding Sango's room, he was almost caught by two guards before entering the room. Now, as if he had all the time in the world, the idiot was trying to make small talk with him, for which he had no patience left. "Tell me what happened after we left, you bastard!"

"Oh! Well… nothing, actually. They came looking for you, but I managed to fend them off. You're safe where you are… at least for now."

"For now? What do you mean?"

"I've heard that alien forces asked for permission to search for you, my friend. You know what that means, right?"

"Shit! Are they here?"

"I hear they haven't gotten permission yet, but it doesn't mean they'll never get it, and when they do, you know what will happen."

Sighing, he brushed his hand over his right ear that started twitching madly in his irritation. "I know. I can't stay here if they come looking for me… They probably have gotten my scent when I stole the damn thing, and if they did, they can easily sniff me out, the bastards."

"Well, it will take a while before they can land here, my friend. However you should be on guard, and try to contact me as often as possible. I have a friend who will alert me if anything new happens."

"I'll try… Shit!" At the sound of the door opening, he broke the connection abruptly, and threw himself under the desk he had been leaning on.

* * *

Stomping into her room, she threw her stole to the floor, almost shredding the delicate fabric in her anger. Next her purse received its share by being thrown to the wall. Breathing deeply, she massaged her temples, desperately trying to calm down. Why did she even go, knowing that he would be there? The bastard that he was, he always found a way to get on her nerves. _Asshole! Flirting around with anything that has breasts… and he talks to me as if nothing ever happened! As if we've never been… and as if he hasn't… Gods!_

"Are you alright?"

She gasped, hearing Kagome's voice so close behind her. She forgot that the poor girl had been following her around all night. Her first instinct was to snap at the girl, but she managed to stop herself before she broke the oblivious girl's heart for nothing. Taking one last deep breath, she composed her features, before turning to face her young maid. Plastering a fake smile to her face, she answered nonchalantly.

"Yeah! Of course I'm alright. Why wouldn't I be?"

The look on Kagome's face told her that she did not believe her, but to her relief, the girl did not insist. Sighing, she sat in front of her vanity and started cleaning the heavy make-up from her face. Trying to divert the girl's attention away from herself, as well as to keep her own thoughts away from the irritating man she had to face at the gathering, she started talking about the topic that had been the center of all conversations tonight.

"Did you hear what they said about that alien fugitive?"

"Oh, the fugitive? How could I not? Everybody was talking about that." Moving to unbuckle Sango's hair, she continued, her voice unusually sarcastic. "Don't worry. I'm sure our courageous soldiers will find him in no time."

Gasping, Sango sent the young girl a disbelieving look through the mirror. "Kagome! You shouldn't be making fun of our fine officers." Although her words were meant to chastise the young maid, the laughter in her own voice betrayed her intentions. "Honestly, it doesn't suit you, belittling others like that."

"I'm sorry. It's just… I mean, how hard can it be to capture some weird alien? The fact that it's taking them so long only shows their incapability if you ask me."

"You're wrong about that. I know for a fact that our security is among the best all around the galaxy. If that man is still on the loose, it's because of his superior skills to run and hide."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Didn't you hear how dangerous they said he was? Did you miss it when they said he wouldn't hesitate to kill if need be? If I'm not wrong, what he stole was perhaps the most closely guarded object in the universe. The man got in and out without being noticed by anyone until the last second. They don't even know what he looks like for God's sake!" Satisfied that she made her point, she decided to lighten their mood with a little joke. "I understand he's even more skillful than Miroku. Gods, what a trouble!"

As the young girl chuckled uncontrollably, Sango remembered what she had been meaning to ask the girl for the last few days. "Speaking of Miroku… how are things going with your new toy?"

"M-my new toy?"

"Your S-android, stupid! That gorgeous piece of ass I bought for you? Does that ring a bell?"

"Oh… everything's fine."

"Just fine? Can't you elaborate at least a little?"

"What do you want me to say? He's great. It's wonderful to have someone so close, someone to go to at the end of the day, someone to take care of, someone to take care of you, to hold you…"

Looking at Kagome's reflection on her mirror, her eyes shining with something that shook the older woman to the core, her face adorning a soft smile, Sango couldn't find her voice for a few seconds. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, anything, she was silenced by the girl's softly uttered question.

"Do you think S-androids have emotions like us?"

This was what she had been afraid of. It was why she wanted to talk to the girl about the S-android. Now she regretted not doing it earlier, for it seemed to be too late already. Knowing that her next words would burst the girl's bubble, she took a deep breath before talking in a soft voice as if to alleviate the effect of her words. "Kagome? You know that **it** is not alive, don't you? **It** is not a real person, just a robot. **It** does not have feelings."

"I already know that! It's just that I like to think of **him** that way. You don't understand. He's… he's the only one I have to share my life."

Hearing the girl's last words, Sango could not help but feel guilty. She was lonely wasn't she? It has been too long since she had forgotten that Kagome had no one in this world but Sango and her own family. Now that she thought about it, her family hadn't done much for the girl except protecting her from the outside world. At some point, she had tried to be a friend and an older sister to the girl, but that changed a few years ago. She had been engaged to a handsome captain whom she had loved with all her heart. Unfortunately, on one of the nights he stayed over, she had caught him trying to sneak into Kagome's room. She knew the girl had nothing to do with him; she was only fourteen at the time for God's sake! Nevertheless, she couldn't stop distancing herself from the girl. She didn't know what her attitude did to the girl until now. Maybe deep down she did though, and maybe that was why she bought the S-android for her… to atone for her behavior. _Oh, God… what have we done to you? I'm sorry for not realizing how lonely you were before._

Clearing her throat as she tried hard to keep her tears from falling, she decided it was time to lighten their moods. "So… how good is it in bed?"

The girl's eyes widened in alarm as she stuttered. "W-what?!"

"You heard me! Now, tell me… for how long can it make you cum?"

At that the girl's face turned beet red and she whirled around, the hair-clips still in her hands. "I-I-I… I w-wouldn't know."

"Hmm… that good, huh?"

"No! I mean… I wouldn't know, because I haven't done that with him."

Standing up, Sango couldn't keep her voice from raising a little. "You didn't?! Why not?"

"W-well, i-it's just that I've never before… I mean… it will be my first time and… and I guess I'm a little… scared."

"What?!" She turned the young girl to face her by her grip on her shoulder before continuing in a more controlled voice. "You're scared? Why in God's name did you accept it then?"

If it was possible, Kagome's face became a darker shade of red. "Because I've never had such a precious thing before, and probably I never will again. Besides, I wasn't able to think clearly that day."

It was no use pushing the girl into making use of her S-android. Just as she decided to give up on the topic, a mischievous light shone in Sango's eyes. Letting the girl go, she started walking towards her sleeping quarters as she asked nonchalantly. "If you're not going to use it, I guess you wouldn't mind if I gave it a try, huh?"

"No way!"

Chuckling at the girl's possessive behavior, Sango called for her own favorite S-android which obediently came out of its place and followed the young woman to the next room. Asking Kagome to tidy up before leaving, she proceeded to make out with the S-android behind the semi-transparent glass wall of her sleeping quarters.

* * *

Kagome watched as Sango took the S-android to her sleeping quarters. She knew that one to be her favorite, the one that suspiciously looked like Miroku. She knew that her lady had feelings for the unlawful merchant, just like she knew that the woman would not act on those feelings even if they killed her. She could remember how depressed the young woman had been when she broke off her engagement. She still did not know her reason for doing so, but guessed that it had to be something big, for Sango had been madly in love with the young captain. What could he have possibly done to break her lady's heart? Well, whatever he did, he caused Sango to swear to never let men into her heart again.

Kagome watched as Sango took the S-android to her sleeping quarters. She knew that one to be her favorite, the one that suspiciously looked like Miroku. She knew that her lady had feelings for the unlawful merchant, just like she knew that the woman would not act on those feelings even if they killed her. She could remember how depressed the young woman had been when she broke off her engagement. She still did not know her reason for doing so, but guessed that it had to be something big, for Sango had been madly in love with the young captain. What could he have possibly done to break her lady's heart? Well, whatever he did, he caused Sango to swear to never let men into her heart again.

Kagome watched as Sango took the S-android to her sleeping quarters. She knew that one to be her favorite, the one that suspiciously looked like Miroku. She knew that her lady had feelings for the unlawful merchant, just like she knew that the woman would not act on those feelings even if they killed her. She could remember how depressed the young woman had been when she broke off her engagement. She still did not know her reason for doing so, but guessed that it had to be something big, for Sango had been madly in love with the young captain. What could he have possibly done to break her lady's heart? Well, whatever he did, he caused Sango to swear to never let men into her heart again.

She shook her head, and went to gather the stole and the purse the woman thrown around the room. Putting them in the wardrobe, she checked the room to see if anything else was misplaced. She saw the magazine disks that were normally stored in a special disk-case lying on the floor next to the couch. _She must have read them last night._ Gathering the disks, she walked to the desk and put the messy collection on its smooth surface. Pushing two buttons on the control panel placed on the left side of the desk, she watched as a comfortable looking chair was raised from the floor, as well as the disk-case that contained Sango's magazine collection descended from the roof to stop on the desk's right side. Knowing that it would take a while to place the disks in their respectful places, she sat on the chair and started arranging the disks based on their publication dates.

Just as she was done with her task, she looked up from the desk at the thumping sound coming from Sango's bed chamber. She could see the silhouettes of her lady and the S-android through the semi-transparent glass wall. Sango's back was plastered to the wall, while the S-android stood in front of her. She could clearly decipher their moves from where she sat in front of the desk. She wasn't sure if it was supposed to be like this, or if it was just Sango's way of taking out her anger, but the violence in their acts was what scared her most about having sex. She saw Sango slap the S-android, and the S-android slapped her back before pushing her to the wall with his body, causing another loud thump echo in the room.

No, she didn't want this. She didn't want to have sex if it meant hurting someone and being hurt in return. No. What she wanted was… to make love. He wasn't supposed to hit her… he was supposed to caress her face, and she was supposed to touch his face in return. Then he would kiss her softly, trailing his hand down her neck, her shoulders, and her back, only to hug her close to his own body. She would respond to his kiss wholeheartedly, holding onto his neck to keep him closer. Lost in her little fantasy, she raised her right hand to clutch at her shirt over her rapidly beating heart as her breathing became shallow. His other hand would touch her thigh, and slowly follow a trail up under her skirt. She did not even realize that her left hand came down to mimic the movements of the imaginary man's hand on her leg, hiking her skirt up while it did so. Then the tips of his claws would meet parts of her body nobody ever touched before, making her tremble in excitement, while his golden eyes would leave her breathless with the love shining in them. As she sighed at the image on her head, one word came out of her mouth in a breathy whisper.

"Yash."

Following that involuntary call, a few things happened almost at the same time. Her eyes flew open as the sound of her own voice broke her trance, and she jumped to her feet, her right hand which had been clutching her chest flying to her right side, and in the process, bumping into the disk-case, and causing a few disks to fall onto the desk in a loud crash.

Not believing herself to have fantasized about her S-android in such a manner, she quickly placed the fallen disks in the empty spaces she found on the case without paying attention to their order. After pushing the buttons to get rid of the chair and the disk-case, she straitened herself up before hurrying out of the room, and stumbling on her own feet twice in her hurry, her face beet red in embarrassment.

* * *

He swore under his breath when he smelt an irritated Sango in the room, followed closely by Kagome's sweet scent.

_Dammit! The one time I need them gone, they decide to come back early?! Where did my luck go?_ Well, to be honest, he should still call himself lucky for having found a place to hide in a matter of seconds. If only the place wasn't so constricted… _Now I'll have to wait until they are gone…_

His ears perked up when he heard the girls talking about 'the fugitive.' He had to suppress his snicker at the sarcasm in his girl's voice. Of course

He had to suppress his snicker at the sarcasm in his girl's voice. _Even she knows they won't manage to capture me. Wait a minute… __**my**__ girl? _Before he could ponder about what he had just thought, he heard Sango telling that it was because of his own abilities that he hadn't been caught. _Keh! What can I say? She's right… _He listened to the young woman talk about how dangerous he was, and had a hard time to keep himself from laughing aloud at what she said about him being better than Miroku. Then he heard himself become the topic of their conversation. He listened intently as Kagome talked about his presence in her life, and almost hit his head to the desk when she asked about S-androids having emotions. What does she think? No… what does she expect… from me? As he was thinking about how correct he had been in assuming that she had decided to think of him as her new family, Sango asked her how good he was in bed. Just like he expected, the girl confessed that they hadn't done it after squirming for a while. Then he had to bite his lips to keep his laughter in when Sango asked to borrow him and Kagome snapped at her. _Damn! This is too much fun!_

Then Sango went to the other room, telling the girl to clean up. He could hear the sound of her shuffling around, as well as the rather annoying sounds of sex coming from the other room. Then he heard her footsteps getting closer. He held his breath as she came to stand in front of the desk. To his irritation, she sat on the chair, causing him to struggle to back up under the desk to avoid contact with her legs. He could see her upper thighs from where he sat under the desk, his head leaning on his raised knees. He couldn't help but think how much he would be able to see if she moved her legs just a little more apart… He caught himself leaning forward to catch her scent better, as if it wasn't enough that she was practically just a breath away from him. It was then he heard the loud thumps coming from the next room. Keh! So the vixen likes it wild, huh? No more than a few seconds passed before his attention was abruptly brought back to the girl in front of him as an impossibly enticing scent began to waft from between her legs. _Gods… Oh, Gods… I'm… I'm cursed… definitely cursed…_ He knew what that spicy tone in her scent meant. He had smelt it too many times to count before. But to smell it in her normally sweet scent… it drew him mad. Just what the hell was happening out there?! Why was she aroused all of a sudden? He had to grip his thighs to keep his hands reaching for her. How the hell was he supposed to get out of this one? Then, as if his current torture wasn't enough, her hand came down to touch her thigh, hiking her skirt up, and presenting him with more of her silky skin, as well as causing her scent to spike even more. Just as he began to see red, which had never been a good thing, he heard her soft voice whisper his name, causing him to jump in surprise and bump his head to the desk. Luckily, she jumped at the same time, followed by a loud crash coming from the top of the desk, effectively concealing the sound of his head hitting the desk.

He waited until the clumsy girl managed to get herself out of the room before jumping up and rushing out. He took the longer route to Kagome's room to avoid meeting her on the way if she was heading there. In less than a minute, he threw himself inside the girl's room panting. He was relieved to see that she wasn't back yet. He leaned on the wall trying to control his breathing. He could still smell her arousal, and the sound of her voice calling his name so heatedly continued to ring in his ears. He already had trouble in controlling his urges when it came to the girl. What was he to do now that he knew she wanted him too? How was he supposed to do nothing if she smelled like that again? In that small room no less? What if she never made a move?

Only one thing was for certain… temptation had never been this hard to resist.

End of Chapter

**Author's Note (2):** I recently saw a very similar sentence to my ending sentence of this chapter in the summary of 'As Deemed by Fate' by Jade Catseye. I'd like to say that I did not have any idea about it. I must have read that summary before (loong ago), but it definitely wasn't in my mind when I wrote that. Well, I'm strictly against plagiarism.


	4. Frustration

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I also do not make any monetary profits by writing these stories.

**Author's Note:** Although I reply each signed review privately, I still feel the need to thank for the wonderful reviews. So, thanks! Once again, I'm sorry for the late update. It's all because of my other story, Heartless, I swear! When I'm finally through with that story (which hopefully will not take too long) I will update the S-android more frequently.

**Warning:** Lime

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter 4: Frustration**

_Breathe in… breathe out…_ Her heartbeat rang in her ears as another bead of sweat slid down her neck only to disappear between the swell of her breasts. She could feel her muscles complain at the strain she had been putting herself in for the last hour. With an angry cry, she jumped over the large log that blocked her path. Neither the serenity of the forest, nor the feeling of refreshment she felt whenever she jogged eased her mind tonight. She was confused… and agitated.

She hadn't known what to do after she had thrown herself out of Sango's room. She hadn't had the courage to go back to her own room knowing that _he_ would be there. So she had opted to exercise, wishing that wearing herself down would get the image of him touching her so intimately out of her mind. She had been mortified when she had realized that she had been fantasizing about him so openly. What was wrong with her? How was it possible that she could imagine him doing things to her she had never experienced before, yet feel as if he was really there, touching her?

_Breathe in… breathe out…_ She increased her pace in frustration when another image of his heated gaze on her lips as his claws traced an unseen path on the skin of her thigh flashed before her eyes. This wasn't working. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop thinking about him… or the way he looked that day when he got out of the shower. His soaked hair plastered to his back and shoulders, his lean figure radiating power like a god from ancient drawings, the muscles under his smooth skin contracting as tiny droplets of water trailed down his chest and abdomen towards his… Gritting her teeth, she scrunched her eyes shut as she sped up even more.

She could hear the sound of dry leaves and pine needles crunch under her feet with every harsh step she took. It wasn't just that she was afraid of having… sex. She had grown up in a society where such affairs out of marriage were frowned upon. Surely, she wasn't naïve enough to think that it meant that rule worked behind closed doors. Sango was a proof of it, and it wasn't only the S-androids she owned. Her young mistress had even slept with her ex-fiancé. But that was different. Sango was her mistress, whereas Kagome was too insignificant to defy the rules of society. Even her grandfather had taught her about the importance of morals and integrity when he had been alive. He had been a holy man and a man of honor. But he had left her, just like the rest of her family whom she couldn't even remember. Then, in a way, Sango had left her as well. She was too afraid to be abandoned again.

She was aware that she was already attached to Yash more than necessary. But that was okay as long as it didn't go further than she could handle. Having sex with him would be crossing the line she had drawn herself though. She knew if she shared that intimacy with him, there would be no going back. It would mean that she trusted him enough to give him access to her body as well as her soul. That was what frightened her the most. But, didn't the fact that she was thinking about him that way, that she was craving his touch like she did only mean that she already trusted him with her whole being?

She shook her head, causing her long ponytail swish from side to side and slap her cheek once as if trying to beat some sense into her huddled mind. Would it be wrong to trust him? After all, what was there not to trust? He wasn't a human being, so it wasn't likely that he would die and leave her alone. He was just a S-android, a fact she had difficulty remembering from the beginning—a S-android that belonged to her. He wasn't going anywhere unless she wanted him to, and he sure wasn't going to play with her emotions because… he was _hers_ for as long as she had him. But…

She slowed down before coming to a full stop. Apparently, nothing she would do tonight would ease her mind. Perhaps she would feel better if she just slept on it. A soft touch of her forefinger on the control panel to her right effectively brought her back from the illusion of forest to the dimly lit workout room of which she was currently the only occupant. Sighing tiredly, she took a sweep from her small water bottle, and made her way towards her room, wishing that when she got there he would be in sleeping mode for the sake of her sanity.

_

* * *

_

_Breathe in… breathe out…_ It had been his mantra since he had thrown himself into the small room. It was proving to be impossibly difficult to cool himself down and forget about the lingering memory of her scent in his nostrils—especially in this room. The air in the small room oozed of her scent… and his. With each deep breath he took, he was overwhelmed by the intensity of their combined scents, reminding him of how she would smell if he had…

With a loud growl he started breathing through his mouth instead of his nose. Never in his life had he regretted having such heightened senses… until today. He had to calm down… immediately. He wasn't sure he could control his actions otherwise. _Damn! Why does she have to be so… so…_ Cute? Beautiful? Enticing? Alluring? Or… innocent?

What was it about her that made him want her so much? No, he didn't just want her. He was _craving_ her. Somehow, this innocent little creature, this clumsy wench, was bringing out his baser instincts like no other woman had done before. So much so that he was having trouble keeping the monster in him from surfacing. _That_ wasn't a good thing. He couldn't let _that_ happen. He had two choices it seemed: either he was going to fuck her soon to quench this unreasonable lust, or he was going to leave without looking back.

The sound of the door sliding and a soft gasp made him turn back. The first thing he noticed was that she looked breathtaking with her eyes wide open like a deer caught in headlights, her luscious figure standing in the doorway, shimmering with sweat, the black shorts and halter top she was wearing mercilessly clinging to her curves as if mocking him. Then he noticed a sharp change in the air brought by the intensity of her scent pouring out of her skin in strong waves. _Shit!_ It hadn't been a good decision to breathe. He should have just let himself suffocate.

The moment their eyes locked, that surprised look he wanted to wipe from her face with his mouth morphed into something softer… something heated. She stepped inside, letting the door close behind her. As if in a trance, he took a step towards her—or maybe he glided, he wasn't sure. The pull she had on him was so strong, he couldn't have stopped himself even if he wanted to. One more small step, and he was just a breath away from her. He vaguely registered the movement of his hand as it brushed away an especially long lock of her wet bangs sticking to her forehead. Though he was more than aware of her breath hitching in her throat at the contact of his warm fingers with her damp skin, as well as the slight inclination of her head towards his hand as he trailed his fingers down the side of her face to cup her cheek. He saw her close her eyes, causing the tips of her dark eyelashes caress his thumb ever so softly before he whispered, "You look beautiful when you're all sweaty."

He inwardly cursed as his voice brought her back from that dreamy state, and she recoiled from his touch, her eyes going wide for a second as if she had just realized where she was before she managed to compose herself. "It's b-because I have b-been exercising."

He looked back at her over his shoulder as she sidestepped him, walked towards the table, and put the small water bottle in her hand down before murmuring, "And because it's warmer than necessary in here."

His ears twitched atop his head, catching the words clearly even though they weren't probably meant for him to hear. He smirked, his predator instincts kicking in. If she was going to run away from him, he sure as hell wasn't going to make it easy for her. A dangerously wild glint in his eyes, he stalked towards her silently until his chest was almost touching her back and whispered, his breath fanning the stray tendrils of hair above her ear, "It _is_ rather warm here, isn't it?"

He suppressed a snicker when she jumped at the unexpected sound and whirled to face him. She visibly shivered before she took a step back and away from him. He tore his gaze from her doe-like one and bent his head down. "I don't think high temperatures are good for my wires," he muttered as he got a hold of the zipper on the neckline of his black overalls and started slowly pulling it down. He glanced at her from behind the curtain of his bangs when he heard her sharp intake of air only to see that she was clutching the front of her shirt with a trembling hand as if she wanted to mimic his action, her eyes traveling down his chest as his hand revealed more of his smooth skin on its way down to his waist. He raised his head with a satisfied smirk playing on his full lips and shrugged his shoulders, letting the garment slide down his skin and pool around his waist, the curve of his hips the only barricade keeping his pants in place.

He held back a groan as he was slapped in the face by the spike in her scent. She licked her lips with the tip of her tongue, seemingly unable to tear her eyes away from the smooth planes of his chest. Her gaze slowly slid down to his abdomen, and his groin tightened painfully at the hunger shining in her normally innocent eyes. As her eyes traveled lower, an implacable need to feel her soothing touch on his scorched skin broke out in him, goading him to get even closer to her… and he did. Slowly, almost involuntarily, she took a step back, her eyes still glued to his abdomen. He took another step forward and she stepped back again only to find her back plastered to the door of the bathroom.

Now that she didn't have anywhere to run away without making it obvious, he stepped forward slowly, deliberately, careful not to frighten her and cause her to realize that she was cornered. Still in a trance, she slowly raised her hand to hover above his chest, almost touching the sleek skin. His heart thundered in his chest, and he couldn't stop a soft approving growl from rumbling in his throat at the promise of the slightest touch from those creamy, delicate fingers. Hearing the sound of his growl, her hand stopped its progress, and her eyes rose to meet his. Almost instantly, his gaze fell on her slightly parted lips, her breaths coming in and out from between those two rose petals in rapid succession, the swell of her chest rising and falling just as fast, the intensity of her flavor dangerously turning his head. He vaguely felt himself leaning down, his lips thirsty for the moisture still glistening on hers.

For a moment, she raised her head to meet him half-way only to jerk it back as if she had been slapped. Before he could register what was happening, her hand that had been hovering above his chest darted to her side and pushed on the small button on the wall. With a hurried 'I need to take a shower,' she disappeared behind the bathroom door.

He cursed violently under his breath and had to restrain himself from tearing down the offending door. _Dammit!_ He had been so close! A few deep calming breaths later, he leaned his forehead to the cool surface of the closed door as he muttered, "I swear I'm fucking cursed."

* * *

She panted heavily as she let her back rest against the door. Her right hand rose to her chest to press upon the swell of her breast, desperately trying to calm the frantic beating of her heart. She gulped before she approached the shower on her shaky legs. She absentmindedly took off her shoes and socks and turned the shower on. She stood motionless for a few moments, letting the water drench her skin, her hands braced on the wall supporting her trembling body. Only when she tried to soap her chest did she realize that she was still clothed. Gods, what was wrong with her? Quickly taking off her clothes, she left the already wet garments on the floor by her feet and proceeded to wash herself, all the while thinking about what had just happened back in the room.

She had thought… No, she hadn't been capable of thinking at that moment. She had _felt_ as if her heart would burst out of its cage. She could still feel his scorching gaze on her body, igniting an unseen fire that burned her from inside. Those normally golden eyes had taken the color of flames from hell, leaving a sinful trail on her lips, her neck, her bosom, her belly… Everywhere his gaze had touched had melted under its heat, only to pool in her belly and drip down to the one spot between her legs in the form of molten lava.

So lost in her thoughts, she didn't even realize her hands mimicking the memory of his gaze on her skin by touching her burning lips, moving down her neck and softly trailing over her breasts. She hissed in pleasure as her finger tips brushed the pink skin of her erect nipples. As one of her hands lingered where it was, lightly drawing a small circle around the taut peak, the other glided down her belly only to lose its tips in the darkness between her thighs. She whimpered when her finger came in touch with the most sensitive part of her body—a part aching with need—and turned the ache into pleasure, causing her to wonder just how it would feel if it wasn't _her finger_ that touched her there.

* * *

He sighed in relief when the girl's heartbeat slowed down, meaning that she was finally asleep after what seemed to the hanyou like hours. Faking to be in sleeping mode, he hadn't moved a muscle since she had emerged from the bathroom. Even his cursed ear heeded his will for once and stayed motionless. After what he had witnessed—or rather _heard_—while she had been behind that damn door, he hadn't had the courage to look at her. He had been afraid—yes, afraid—of completely losing his control over the strong urge to just take her if he had had a glimpse of her luscious curves. So, he had opted to keep his eyes closed and breathe through his mouth while he listened to her movements. Now that she was asleep, he felt his muscles relax to some extent. Her little whimpers and moans she had apparently tried to suppress as much as she could still rang in his ears though. He knew what she had been doing in there. He had known it the moment he had heard the first whimper that had escaped her mouth, bringing him to his knees where he had been leaning against the door. The only good part was that he was now sure she was as frustrated as he was. He smirked at that revelation. Little Miss Temptation was not immune to his charms, was she?

Without his consent, his mind wandered to what had happened behind that closed door, away from his eyes, creating images of her small hands caressing her splendid mounds and tracing down the silky planes of her abdomen only to get lost in the dark temple he would do anything to worship in, her head thrown back in ecstasy, her lips parted silently begging for more, her eyes closed tightly. What had she seen behind those closed eyelids? Had it been his clawed hands that she had dreamed of while she had mercilessly played with her nub? _Fuck!_ He growled low in his throat as he felt his newly relaxed groins tighten again. That was the last thing he needed, dammit!

He held his breath, hearing her shift under the covers. Once she was settled, he released the air in his lungs only to breathe in again… through his nose. _God damn it!_ What was wrong with her?! Why was she torturing him like this?! What the hell was she dreaming about that made her scent spike with that irresistibly alluring aroma?! And most importantly, how was it that one insignificant wench's arousal was capable of affecting him so much?! _I'm definitely, undeniably cursed!_

He bit his bottom lip, causing his fangs to fracture his skin and silently banged the back of his head to the wall. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

She was so tired of waiting like this. Not only that, she was also tired of this mission. And even more than that, she was tired of her bastard of a commander. Honestly, couldn't she be sent here with someone else? Anyone else, but him? She never liked wolf demons. The bootlicker bastards they were, they never ceased to irritate her. However, this one was perhaps the worst of them. She wasn't sure for how long she could continue to take his shit. That bastard and his clan were treacherous, betraying their own kind like they did. Playing the watchdog for Kikyo like that… Orders were orders though, and she had no choice but to obey them. And that included stomaching that bastard. Speaking of which… She kept herself from shuddering as the said bastard appeared in the control room unannounced. Judging by the stupid grin on his face, he must have received some news he apparently liked. Why was it that she already knew she wouldn't like whatever it was?

Making his way to where she was sitting, the wolf demon sent her a fang bearing grin, his blue eyes shining with mirth. Trailing her hands in her long black tresses, she asked, her voice concealing her irritation with an expertise that came with years of practice, "What's up, Kouga? You look like you just won a trophy."

Kouga stopped before her, his grin widening even more if it was possible. "I just talked to those bastards. Two days, Rin. If they can't find him tomorrow, we're landing."

"Do you think we'll be able to find him? I mean, they have been searching everywhere for days. And if they couldn't find anything yet…"

Cutting her off, Kouga continued heatedly, his chest puffing out with his over-confidence. "Nonsense! I know his scent like my own. I'll sniff him out myself if I have to. Besides, The White Lady can sense the whereabouts of the jewel, you know. She already knows which part of the planet it is in. So we won't have to search for a long time."

Rin rolled her eyes at the wolf demon she would like to think as pathetic. He really was a lapdog, wasn't he? Flattering Kikyo with stupid nicknames even when she wasn't around. "White Lady? She has a name, you know?"

Not caring about how she felt about his chosen nickname for his precious mistress that had given him and his clan a high position in the society—a position they had never been privileged to when the dog clan had been ruling—he turned back from her with a smirk on his lips and made his way to the door, his joy visible in his strides.

Rin sighed as she watched the wolf demon leave. She knew that Kouga smiling meant bad news. Now, because of what Kouga said, she had to risk contacting _him_.

* * *

Kagome walked down the hall that led to Sango's room with hurried steps. She had noticed the unusual traffic in the building as soon as she got out of her room, but her mind was too busy to ponder about it. After the incidents of last night and especially the dreams she had suffered from throughout the night, she had been too ashamed to talk to Yash in the morning. Luckily, he had still been in sleeping mode when she had woken up. Quickly getting dressed, she had practically thrown herself out of the room. After trying to feed her stomach in the kitchen despite her lack of appetite, she had given up and decided to check on Sango to see if she was awake.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get the image of his chiseled chest and the hungry expression on his beautiful face out of her mind. Perhaps, Sango could provide her the distraction she needed.

Upon arriving at the door, the first thing she noticed was that it was open. _Now, that's unusual._ To be honest, she had hoped, but not expected, her mistress to be awake this early in the morning. She peeked into the room without entering and gasped at the sight that met her eyes. Sango was awake, alright. Wearing a burgundy colored robe over her white nightgown, she was arguing with what seemed to be a soldier. There were at least three more soldiers searching the room with their guns in their hands. What was going on here? Why would they search Sango's room—the daughter of a powerful and respected senator? Come to think of it, why were there so many soldiers in the building today?

Seeing her gaping at the door, Sango broke her argument with the soldier abruptly and hurried to her side. Before the surprised maid could ask anything, the older woman grasped her upper arm in a tight grip and led her out to the hall before whispering, her voice laden with urgency, "Thank God, Kagome, you're here! Quick! You must go back to your room!"

Feeling Sango's panic spread in her own chest, she questioned, "Why? What's going on?"

Leaning towards her ear, Sango whispered, "They're searching for that fugitive we talked about last night."

She gasped hearing that. Why would anyone search for a fugitive in a senator's house? "The fugitive? Here? But Sango, your father's a senator! They can't possibly think…"

"Exactly. That's why this is one of the last places they're searching. Apparently, they couldn't find the guy anywhere yet. We'll talk later. You must hurry back!"

Kagome wasn't sure she was following Sango. What did she have to do with it if they were looking for a fugitive? "Why? I don't understand…"

Apparently tired with her naivety, Sango snapped, "Use your brain, stupid! They're looking for that bastard, but it doesn't mean that they will overlook something illegal if they see one."

Kagome's eyes widened in realization the moment she registered the word 'illegal,' and one word fell from her lips in a choked whisper, "Yash."

"Yeah, Yash. Now go and hide that gorgeous ass of his wherever you can!"

"But…" Before she could continue, Sango turned and went back to her room to resume her argument with that soldier who had disappeared into her sleeping quarters during her absence. Not wanting to waste another precious second, the panicked girl ran down the hall in hopes of reaching her room before anyone discovered her little secret. All the while, her mind swirled with possible places to hide her beloved S-android. Her room was small, and there was no place large enough to hide him. _Gods, what am I going to do?!_ Before she knew it, she was in the hall on the lowest floor of the building where her room was located. To her horror, a group of soldiers were entering the room next to hers.

* * *

With one last push of his hips towards his hand, he felt his member pulse as his seed was washed away with the water falling down from the shower head. He leaned his forehead to the wall, his breathing slowly returning to normal. He hadn't done this for several years. He hadn't needed to for he had always found some good-looking member of the opposite sex more than willing to pleasure him, and he sure as hell didn't like it in the least bit that he needed to do it now. Although he was disgusted that he was miserable enough to lower himself like this, he would admit that it felt good to have his groins finally relax from the tension of the last few days. _Gods! Look at what one little wench did to me._ He snorted bitterly as he turned the shower off and made his way to the tub that was now filled with warm water.

After she had left this morning, he had thrown himself to the bathroom having no patience left to prolong his suffering. He knew she wouldn't be back for long hours, so he decided to make use of this time and let the warm water wash away his frustration at least for now. Making himself comfortable in the large tub, he leaned his head back on the marble lid and closed his eyes. Resting his elbows on the sides of the tub, he let his hands play with the thick layer of suds covering the surface of the water. His moment of peace lived short however when he heard someone enter the room. His head jerked back up and he listened intently to the shuffling sounds coming from the room. Whoever that was, he or she was definitely out of breath if the sound of panting meant anything.

"Yash?" Hearing his name whispered, he set up straight in the tub. _Kagome?_ What was she doing there at this time of day? Before he could get out of the tub he heard the bathroom door open to reveal a disheveled looking Miss Temptation. Her hands trembling, she stepped inside and whispered, "Thank God, you're here. For a second I thought they caught you."

Alarmed by her words as well as the fact that she _didn't_ freak out seeing him naked in the tub, he questioned, "Caught me? Who're they? What's going on?"

She began frantically checking every available space in the bathroom, looking for God knew what as she answered in a hushed tone, "The soldiers! They are searching the building for a thief on the loose. They are everywhere! They'll be here in a minute, and oh God, they shouldn't see you! They'll take you away if they do!"

Understanding dawned on him even before she was finished. _Shit! They're looking for me!_ He moved to get out of the tub, but stopped short when he heard the sound of the bedroom door open and the following heavy footsteps. From what he could hear, there were at least three people in the room. He could easily take them out if he wanted to, but then what? She said the building was full of soldiers. He tried to think of a way to save his ass, but the noises she was making while she searched for somewhere to hide him as well as the acute scent of fear wafting from her pores wouldn't let him. Hoping it would at least stop the annoying voices she made, he whispered, "They're here."

She gasped and rushed to the door, plastering her ear to its smooth surface to confirm his statement. She must have heard it for she whirled to look at him, a look of sheer terror on her face. That moment lived short though for the next instant she was taking off her clothes and telling him not to look.

Even though her actions confused him to no end, he had enough grace to turn his head away quickly. _What the hell?!_ After all he went through in the last days, _now_ she was getting naked? He opened his mouth to voice his confusion, but his question was forgotten with her next words. "Captain Houjo is in the room. He's a gentleman and he won't dare enter the room if he knows I'm bathing." He felt her getting into the tub behind him as she continued, "I want you to stay under water until I let you out, okay? Can you do that?"

_Clever wench! _She was going to hide him in the tub! Since she was going to be in there too, no one would dare look any closer! He couldn't stop the smirk that formed on his lips at her next statement. "Whatever you do, do not peep!" It really was hard to keep himself from chuckling at that. She was going to lay there with him—naked—and practically in his arms—naked—and she was concerned about him peeping? His amusement died to be replaced by a warm sensation when he felt her settle behind him, her legs on both of his sides. Holding his hair with one hand, she urged him to lean against her with the other by gently pulling on his shoulder. He had to stop himself from growling in pleasure when he felt the softness of her breasts on his back as well as the hardness of her erect nipples. _Wait a minute... Erect? Why are they erect?_

"Slide down under the water,Yash."

Her voice was so soft, like a feathery caress in his ears, that he found it hard not to do anything she would ask ... Wait.. His ears! He stopped right before his head was above water. "Just one thing..."

"What?"

"Be careful with the ears."

He heard her small chuckle before she replied, "Okay."

He let himself submerge the moment he heard the footsteps at the bathroom door. As the door opened, he felt her cover his ears, which were currently above water, with suds. He supposed it was a good thing that they were white.

"Oh, miss Kagome! I'm so sorry to disturb you," said a guy who sounded to be in his twenties, or early thirties at most. He couldn't care less about the soldier though for his mind was elsewhere at the moment—namely the softness of her body under his and the smoothness of her calves in his hands. He heard her ask, "Wh-why are y-you here, C-captain?" He couldn't decide if her stuttering was because of their predicament, or because of the slow caresses of his claws on her calves for he could swear she nearly jerked her leg up when he first started drawing little circles on her skin.

Her question was followed by a brief silence during which she slid down even more while a small but distinct tremor shook her body. _What the…?!_ She was trying to better hide herself, wasn't she? _That bastard's checking her out! Why I oughtta…_

Before he made a possible mistake and lounged himself on that prick, he heard him mutter, "Well, I see what we are searching for is not here. Please, accept my apologies." Lucky for the bastard, he left the bathroom immediately. When the hanyou heard the door close after the 'Captain,' he emerged from the water, turning his body to face her in the process. His angry comment concerning dicks and backsides of assholes some naïve wenches called 'gentlemen' died on his lips the moment he laid his eyes on her face. She looked absolutely stunning with her eyes blinking at him rapidly as if trying to adjust to his proximity, causing her long eyelashes to flutter gently over her flushed cheekbones, her chest heaving in a series of quick but short breaths, in each turn causing her mounds to rise above water just enough to make his heart skip a beat. Not to mention that he was now lying in her arms and between her legs. Somehow he was sure she didn't notice it, but his rapidly hardening erection was poking her thigh and slowly but determinedly making its way towards her entrance as if it was pulled by a magnet.

He knew nothing good would come out of it if he let the moment prolong. She would notice his reaction to her, and she would freak out any time now. In order to save himself the embarrassment, he decided if it was going to end, he would be the one to end it. So he inhaled deeply, and opened his mouth… "Why do you think it is that you end up in my arms in this tub? You should tell me if you have a bathroom fantasy. After all, that's what I'm here for."

To his surprise, instead of freaking out, she laughed at his words—a melodic sound that hypnotized him as much as her succulent lips did, drawing him in, beckoning him to kiss her. He found his face leaning towards her only to stop at the last moment, remembering his promise not to touch her unless she asked him to.

He couldn't draw back though, her pull on him was too strong for him to resist. So he stayed where he was as if frozen in time, his gaze locked with hers, his lips almost touching her parted ones, their breaths mixing together in the small space that separated them. His breath hitched in his throat when she closed the distance, letting her soft lips become one with his, her heart beating wildly under his chest, its loud thumps rivaling those of his own.

_Gods, she tastes so sweet._ He didn't understand how… Nothing was supposed to taste this good. Her lips were so soft against his, so plump… Their hesitant caresses on his sensitive skin were driving him crazy. As his one arm snaked around her waist to keep her warmth closer to him, his other arm rose to her neck, his fingers tangling in her silken hair and gently tugging so that he could deepen the kiss. He sucked on her lower lip greedily, and was delighted to feel her respond in the same manner, with equal hunger as she chewed on his upper lift. His ears perked up and his groin twitched when he heard her moan softly—that little sound from heavens he had been privileged to hear last night. Taking his chance, he slipped his tongue inside her mouth, caressing her own pink organ, goading and daring it to a sinful dance. He whimpered when she took the initiative and sucked on his tongue like a baby, her arms linked behind his neck, her legs rising to his hips, needlessly keeping him in a cage he would never want to escape in the first place.

He broke the kiss reluctantly when it became necessary for the both of them to breathe. However, for some reason, he couldn't keep his lips away from her skin. It could be her enticing scent or the delicious taste of her skin—he wasn't sure, and honestly, he didn't care. All he wanted to do was taste her as much as he could now that she was in his arms. So taste her he did. As his lips indulged in the sleekness of her neck, he let his hand that had been holding onto her hair slide down her side, causing her to shiver despite the warmth of the water, and traced his claws on her thigh, making her arch her back and grip his hips tighter. Their moans echoed from the bathroom walls as her movement caused his member to slide on her soft folds.

His ears twitched hearing a pair of footsteps in the bedroom. The next instant he heard the sound of the bathroom door opening and he found himself under the water once more. The only difference was that now his face was plastered to her abdomen. He strained his ears, trying to understand what was being said, but could only make out bits and pieces of the conversation for the water was contorting the sounds.

"Sorry… again… let me know… see anyone or… suspicious?"

That was the jerk of a captain again. The bastard probably couldn't get enough of her, could he? He felt Kagome nod her head in response rather than talk. And then his head was hauled out of the water. Before he could ask what that had been about, she hurried out of the tub and listened intently to the door to make sure the guy left. She didn't need to do that. He _knew_ the bastard left already and hopefully for the last time. Obviously deciding that he left, she sighed in relief, and turning back, leaned on the door.

He was petrified. He couldn't tear his eyes from what had been in his arms moments ago. She must have realized this for with a little squeak, she rushed out of the bathroom. He watched the door close behind her with his mouth agape. _What the hell?!_ Wasn't she the one making out with him in this tub—and stark naked if he must add—only a few seconds ago? _Now_ she was realizing that she had been naked the whole time?!

Feeling the familiar frustration settle in its nest in his groins, he groaned miserably. "Gods, kill me already!" With that he let himself slide into the water, thinking that if he still had his luck, he would not surface again.

End of Chapter 4


	5. Unleashed

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga, nor do I make any money by writing this story. However, the name 'S-android' and this story are products of _my_ imagination, meaning they belong to _me_. Ha!

**Author's note:** I'm tired of writing this as much as you're tired of reading, but I must do it once again. Sorry for the late update! My initial plan was to keep this chapter longer, but then I decided against it. So, here it is!

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The citrus in this chapter is dedicated to my dear friend and beta, Ai Kisugi. Thanks for all the help and encouragement you've so graciously given me, girl!

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**Warning:** This chapter contains **lemon**.

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter 5: Unleashed**

The heavy metal door slid open with a barely audible 'tssh.' After making sure that there was no one in the corridor to witness her suspicious behavior, she sneaked into the unoccupied room where she knew there were the tools she needed in order to make an untraceable call. A couple of mocha orbs searched the room before her gaze settled on the panel she intended to use.

With hurried steps she approached the panel and proceeded to punch in several codes. Yes, it was primal. However, unvoiced commands were not stored in the memory, and even if they were, it would be harder to trace it back to her. She couldn't afford to be caught. When she was done, she held her breath and waited for the connection to be established.

She gasped as an all too familiar figure appeared next to her. The hologram was a little distorted due to the outdated technology they were using, but she could still see him clearly towering above her. It was an intimidating sight indeed, especially with that dark cloak covering his long figure and the upper half of his face. She looked up at his eyes shadowed by the hood of his dark cloak when he spoke, "I'm listening."

"We're landing in less than ten hours."

A barely recognizable nod of his head was the only response she received before she continued, "I don't think I'll manage to contact you again once we do."

His cloak flowed in the wind to reveal the black leather hugging his lean but muscular form. _Wind?_ Now that was odd. Intrigued, she couldn't help but ask, "Where are you?"

His lips slightly twitched under her intense gaze. Wait a minute… Was it her imagination, or did he just smirk at her? Before she could utter another word, he cut the connection, leaving her looking at the empty wall behind where he stood a moment ago. What did she expect? An answer? _Yeah, right._

With an irritated sigh she shook her head and took out a minuscule bottle from her belt. Spraying the panel with the strong deodorizer so as not to leave her scent around for the wolves, Rin muttered under her breath, "Jerk."

* * *

In the darkness of the cloudy night sky, nobody noticed a black figure standing atop a worn out building. A pair of golden eyes flashed under the shade of his hood as he scanned the sight below him, his cloak whipping wildly in the night wind. It didn't matter. The cloak would cover his scent as long as he wore it. In the blink of an eye he jumped, and like a phantom, he glided down the side of the building soundlessly. His leather boots touched the ground distorted with the remnants of a shipwreck, causing his lips to curve down in distaste and eliciting startled gasps from the few miserable humans lurking in the vicinity.

It had been quite some time since the crash, but the scent still permeated the area. The unmistakable odor of a dog-demon tainted with humanity_ — _a hanyou_._ _His_ scent. So familiar, yet still unknown …

What surprised him was that he had been right in his suspicions. After all, how many half-demons were out there, still alive? He had once thought that there was none. But now that he could smell it for himself … He was definitely on the right track.

Surely, the wolves would be able to smell it, too — the ass-licking bastards. Luckily, he was almost ten hours ahead of them. He couldn't let them interfere. This was _his_ job. _He_ was going to be the one to seize the hanyou.

He slightly bent his head and sniffed to catch the fugitive's trail on the ground before starting in that direction. In the eyes of those cowering in the shadows, he was a dark angel from hell floating on their world with a deadly grace. A dark chuckle left his lips as the fear in the air became more potent. Perhaps, they were right…

* * *

An involuntary growl escaped his lips before he suppressed it like he had done so many times for the last few hours. He could feel the restlessness of the demon within him, mercilessly clawing at his insides, demanding to be released. He was sure he would have transformed by now if it hadn't been for the jewel in his hand — the one he had stolen recently, and in doing so — got himself into this mess.

He didn't know why, but he knew the little pink ball was something important — _very_ important. Shit, one look at everything that had happened since he had laid his hands on it was the proof of it. He wasn't sure what the jewel could do or what it had been used for, but it seemed quite harmless in his hand. _What's the deal with you, Pinkie? What the fuck could a pretty little thing like you have done to have big bad guys running after you?_ He sighed, receiving no answers from the inanimate object. Somehow he knew that 'Pinkie' was keeping him from transforming though. He could feel the coolness radiating from it, soothing the fire that was his demon… unlike the girl who was lying sprawled upon her bed only a few feet away from where he was sitting in his usual corner.

Every second of today had been torment on him. After that fiasco in the bathroom, she had left, leaving him alone with the memory of her softness in his hands, the image of her gorgeous nakedness in his eyes, the taste of her sweet skin on his tongue, and the lingering scent of her arousal in the very air he breathed, driving him closer to the brink of insanity with each passing second.

When she returned in the evening, she had acted like nothing had happened with a never-ceasing smile on her face. He knew that fake smile had been a lame attempt to hide her reaction to his presence. He couldn't blame her though. The little wench had no idea that he could smell the spike in her scent whenever their eyes met.

She had made him play some stupid game with her all evening — probably to keep him occupied and away from her person. Honestly, he was dying to _play_ with her — in a different sense, of course. However, her nervousness had been so palpable; he had decided to humor her without a fuss.

The game had turned out to be more fun than he would like to admit. Something called 'chess,' in which holograms of two little armies beat the shit out of each other on their command. "It's a classic," she had said. Classic or not, he had especially enjoyed it when his knight in dark armor had decapitated her white one with its little sword of fire. Damn… What he wouldn't give to have such a cool sword! His mirth had grown even more when she had squeaked in fear seeing her dead knight's head rolling over the war field, which had actually been the small table in her room. Needless to say, her reactions had been even more interesting than the game itself. At one point, so engaged she had been in the game, she had tried to shoo his little soldiers away with her hands — those milky appendages that should forever stay clean of dirt and blood. Bewitched, he had captured her hands in his to keep them away from the pseudo-war-field, away from danger as if the holograms could hurt her. With a startled gasp, she had looked up… and they had found themselves back in square one with her tantalizing aroma in his nostrils and a blush on her cheeks. Letting go of her hands, he had gripped his seat hoping that it would keep him there.

About half an hour later, just when they had both managed to concentrate on the game and become relatively comfortable in each other's presence, his right ear (a.k.a. the _cursed_ ear) had started twitching while he had been waiting for her next move, taking the girl's attention away from the game. Hearing her poorly suppressed giggle, he had looked up, and their eyes had clashed causing a chain reaction of cute blushes and strong waves of alluring scents resulting in one overly nervous girl, one heavily aroused hanyou, and ten deep gashes under the said hanyou's seat.

He growled remembering how her scent had invaded his nose, mercilessly taunting him all evening. 'Pinkie' sent him a new wave of coolness which was quite welcome by the restless hanyou. Taking a deep breath, he leaned his head back on the wall behind him and closed his eyes, desperately clutching the jewel in his palm.

He chuckled lightly remembering how her cheeks had flushed. She was so innocent, so naïve, so…so…pure. Even if she wanted to be with him, it wouldn't be fair to her when he finally ran away once more just in a few days. He couldn't stay there forever. Surely, those bastards would be sniffing around to find him at any moment. Besides, she thought he was a damn robot! He might be a thief without morals, but he wasn't low enough to take advantage of an unsuspecting girl — one that was as kind as she was. He wasn't Miroku, dammit!

The girl in question moaned in her sleep causing his ears to lie back on his head. He gritted his teeth against the rather disturbing images that could produce such a sound from her — images that extracted currently unwelcome reactions from his nether regions. She shifted in bed, the motion sending new waves of her fragrance to the air he breathed, threatening to drug his conscious. _What the fuck is wrong with me, dammit?!_

He had to get out of there before doing something he would actually regret for the first time in his life. _Get out… How the hell do I do that?_ The search for 'the fugitive' was over, but the security of the building was doubled. All the entrances were under strict surveillance. _The entrances, not the exits…_ His eyes snapped open. _The exits!_ Of course! All buildings in this planet had their own garbage disposal units that supplied each structure's energy needs. The habitants of this planet called 'earth' had a significant obsession with keeping the environment clean—possibly due to the fact that life here had been under severe danger because of pollution at some point in the past — and they had found several ways to make use of their own garbage in producing energy, saving the planet from self-destruction and solving their energy problems in the process. If Miroku hadn't been pulling his leg when he had been rambling about his precious planet, there had to be huge ducts under the buildings, leading to a central establishment outside the city where the garbage that could not be used in individual disposal units would be processed by more advanced machinery. If he could somehow reach one of those ducts…

All thoughts of leaving escaped his mind along with the ability to think coherently with one small motion from the delicate creature that showed him a glimpse of heaven only to keep him from reaching there. She pushed the blanket off of her, and his name left her lips accompanied by a soft moan, "Yash."

An unexpected surge of power pulsed in him when he heard her. As if awakening from a decade long sleep, his senses were bombarded with a load of information at once, extracting a gasp from his throat at their intensity. Her rapid breaths rang in his ears as if they were coming out of his own lungs. He could hear every beat of her heart next to his own, the rush of her blood in her heated body causing his own to boil in his veins. The swishing of her eyelashes as her eyes moved under their lids combined with the sound of the small beads of sweat rolling down on her skin…and the smell…He almost choked when he breathed in the air thick with her arousal. Crouching on all fours, he slowly approached the bed like the predator that he was, the fact that 'Pinkie' was left where he had sat and that his claws were longer than usual escaped his notice.

Reaching the bed, he looked up, his ears twitching slightly, catching every little sound coming from the beautiful creature lying before him. Her body was alight with the heat radiating off of her skin, a thin layer of sweat making it shine under his unusually sharp gaze, causing his nostrils to flare just to get more of its intoxicating aroma.

Still on his hands and knees, he drank in her appearance greedily and growled appreciatively at the sight before him. Her one arm was raised over her head, resting on her pillow, while the other traveled down her throat to tug at the neckline of her nightgown as if she wanted to be freed from it. He could see the two small peeks on her breasts pushing up against the thin material of the garment that hid her from his hungry gaze. He smirked evilly as he glared at the offending piece of fabric which wasn't going to live longer if he had any say in it.

Nothing could come between him and _his_ bitch.

Traveling down, his eyes left nothing untouched by his lustful gaze on her quivering form finally to rest on her feet lying right in front of his nose. One little toe twitched, the action shamelessly mimicked by his cursed ear almost simultaneously. He was mesmerized by the milky texture of the small appendage and the scent wafting from it. As if drawn by an unseen force, he leaned forward and let the tip of his tongue taste the underside of her toe. The object of his attentions jerked away at the unexpected touch, and he whined softly. It tasted better than it smelled! Without wasting a second, he raised his hand to lightly rest it on her ankle and started giving slow but long licks to the delicious appendage in his clutches, causing the girl moan his name once more. He vaguely registered that his fangs felt longer than usual, but he paid it no mind. A dog demon had more important things to care about — like paying attention to his bitch when she begged for it.

She whimpered, trying to pull her foot away, but his hold on her ankle did not let her. He growled soothingly and felt her relax almost instantly. The scent that drove him to her in the first place was getting more intense with his ministrations, and he liked it. Even more than that, he liked the way his own essence clung to hers after his touch — so much so that he wanted to drown in it.

As he indulged in the sweetness of the smooth skin under the petite foot with long and languid strikes of his tongue, the toe he had abandoned twitched again, catching his attention once more. His tongue frozen mid-lick, he fixed his gaze on the fascinating appendage, his eyes getting slightly crossed due to the proximity.

It twitched again, and he blinked.

In the next instant, he attacked the diminutive digit like a cat jumping on a mouse. Catching it in his mouth, he started sucking on it like a baby. His ears perked up when he heard a rather loud moan in response to his efforts. His lips puckered around the base of his prey, he looked up, his focus returning to the owner of his precious toy.

The delicate hand that had been tugging on the neckline of her nightgown the last time he had seen it was now sliding down slowly, closely followed by its twin trailing down her neck. Their journey to the south came to a halt once each had a firm grasp on her breasts. He sucked on his make-shift teat harshly when she squeezed those shapely orbs and arched her back up. An impatient growl started in his chest at the teasing sight — the vibrations causing goose bumps on her skin. She pulled her free leg up, bending it at the knee and opening more of herself to him.

Although he was happy with what he had, he decided that it was time to move on in search of more alluring treasures waiting to be found. Leaving her foot, he licked his way up her calve while the claws of his other hand trailed up her leg. Her breathing quickened as his tongue and lips got acquainted with more of her skin. Taking his time to savor the taste of her supple thigh, he slowly inched closer to his destination — to the one place that maddening scent emanated from — knowing that there was a much better feast waiting for him. Her frantic heartbeat was an ancient war call of drums in his ears, coaxing him to attack her with all that he had, and attack her he was going to do.

A slight movement caught his eye from above. Never breaking the connection of his lips with her honeyed skin, he glanced up to see her hand sneaking in her panties. _Not so fast._ Letting out a warning growl, he caught her hand in his, effectively trapping it under the thin fabric. She whimpered and arched her hips towards their combined hands. He nipped at the inside of her thigh to punish her impatience. She became still for a second before she moaned and raised her abused leg as well, wrapping it around his torso and imprisoning him in a silken cage.

Her other hand finally won its battle with her nightgown and managed to free one deliciously creamy mound from its confinement under the fine garment. She cupped her breast mercilessly, the darkened nub peeking from between her fingers a beacon to his eyes. The tug of her hand under his larger one broke his trance and brought his attention back to the task at hand. Keeping an eye on the maddening sight of her pleasuring herself, he followed his nose to the origin of her alluring aroma. His eyes rolled back as the tip of his nose touched the wet cloth and she whimpered. A similar sound escaped his throat as he marveled on how ready she was to receive him. Breathing deeply, he turned his face from left to right to take in her fragrance from every angle possible. As he did so, his nose must have pressed on that precious part of her body for the cry that left her lips could have easily deafened him.

He licked the side of her panties, causing the girl buck her hips up towards his touch. Smirking at her unconscious wantonness, he took her hand from under her panties and brought it close to his lips. He cleaned the delicate digits coated in her essence, indulging in her sweetness which complemented her ravishing fragrance perfectly.

Once he was finished, he found himself craving for more. He had to get to the source of this delicious dessert. Keeping her in place with his two arms wrapped around her upper thighs, he bit the edge of the little piece of cloth keeping him from his goal. He tugged softly with the intention of getting it out of his way. His fangs brushed her skin in his attempt, and she whimpered once more. Sneaking a glance at her face, he saw that her eyes were half-lidded now, darkened with lust so that they looked almost black in the dim light. His groin tightened to the point of pain when their gazes met. With a frustrated growl, he shook his head from side to side, ripping the fabric clutched between his fangs into pieces.

Finally free of the barrier that kept him from his prey, he buried his nose into the now defenseless pink folds bared to his gaze. She moaned his name as her hands flew to his head, taking a hold of his hair and forcing him to stay where he was — as if he had any intention of leaving his new-found heaven. He smirked before letting his tongue slide out of his mouth and glide over her lips in an agonizingly slow pace. She cried out like he knew she would when he flicked the hardened nub atop her folds. Her hold on his hair tightened, silently begging him for more, and he willingly obliged, feasting on the succulent flesh like a starving dog.

He could hear the rush of fluids in her system beneath her loud cries of pleasure as well as his own frantic heartbeat. He let his tongue slide through her entrance, the sweetness of her nectar pushing him to the edge. His member pulsed in anticipation and jealousy at the hot and slick tightness surrounding the lucky appendage in his mouth. Like a desperate prayer he heard his name combined with pleas for more escape from her rosy lips, and he repeated the action over and over. He let his fangs brush her sensitive spot once and again as her juices coated the lower part of his face and dripped down his chin. Delving his tongue inside her core once more, he reveled in the force of her walls crumpling around him, signaling him that she was close … too close. Not wanting to let her escape so easily, he grudgingly tore himself away from her and crawled up to hover over her enraptured form.

Panting, she looked at him, her eyes half-closed with both sleepiness and the welcome effects of his assault on her. She raised her hands slowly and placed them on his cheeks. Her gaze slid down to his cheekbones as she tenderly traced them with her thumbs before it settled on his swollen lips. She licked her own lips hungrily before forcing his face down to meet hers in a fevered kiss. He growled, feeling her soft but firm lips, even sweeter than he remembered when combined with the taste of her essence still on his tongue. Her moan was accompanied by one of his own. She arched her back, causing a maddening friction between their bodies.

If only there weren't so many barriers… That problem was partially solved when his sharp claws made quick work of her nightgown, leaving nothing but scattered pieces of cloth on the bed. His hand traveled up the smooth planes of her abdomen to cup her breast. She gasped at the unexpected touch, giving him the opportunity to deepen the kiss. As he coaxed her tongue to play with his, he felt her hands trace the neckline of his overalls. She opened the front of the garment and pushed it off of his shoulders, trailing her fingers over his heated skin in the process and extracting a moan combined with a growl from him.

Letting go of her breast, he quickly freed his arms from the constricting cloth and shoved it down the rest of his body. After getting rid of his clothes completely, he positioned himself over her before capturing her lips. His member slid over her slick folds, and he groaned in need, breaking the kiss in the process. Leaving her bruised lips to give the breathless girl access to some much needed air, he kissed his way down her throat. As he sucked on the junction of her neck and shoulder, he felt her arms wrap around his shoulders, her nails digging into his flesh in her struggle to keep him close. Suddenly, his fangs tingled teasingly and he felt a strange urge to bite her. Paying it no mind, he gave his attention to tasting her. There was no point in hurting his prey when he could do so such more …

Instead of rooting his fangs into the delicate piece of skin, he nibbled it tenderly and soothed the abused surface with languid strokes of his tongue. His ears perked up as he heard her moan his name — a breathy prayer begging him for … something. Something he knew would kill them both if they waited any longer. It was time to take what had been denied to him for too long. Taking a hold of his shaft, he placed it above her entrance, and burying his face into her neck, he sheathed himself in her with one strong push.

The first thing his brain registered from its place over the clouds was the impossible hotness tightening around him, sending him dangerously close to the edge. The next instant, he heard her cry out, the sound muffled after a second as he felt blunt teeth pierce through the sensitive skin of his ear. Pain mixed with pleasure, and he found his own fangs buried in her neck before he could even blink, a feral growl rumbling through his chest on its own accord.

Surprisingly, his bite caused the girl to relax. She released his ear, licking it in the process. A scorching wave of rapture passed through him, and he couldn't have stopped his hips from thrusting into her even if he wanted to. She moaned his name. Encouraged, he repeated the action … then again … and again. Soon he was ramming into her in abandon, her legs wrapped around his hips as she met his trusts with equal ferocity.

Returning to her lips, he found himself being sucked into her in every way possible, and he couldn't think of another place he would rather be. As her walls crumpled on him, and he followed her into oblivion blindly, all he could think was that this was pure bliss. This was heaven. This was …

… home.

Completely spent, he fell onto her limp form, lazily kissing and licking the marks his fangs left on her neck. Pushing himself up on his elbows, he looked at her beautiful face aglow with sweat and the after effects of their activities. She gave him a tired smile and a small peck on the tip of his nose before drifting back to sleep. Sliding out of her carefully, he lay on his side and embraced her tightly in his arms. A few deep breaths later a small smile crept onto his face at the intensity of his scent on his bitch.

_His_ bitch.

Wait a minute … What?

As the cloud his instincts cast on his mind dissipated, the first coherent thought that crossed his mind was …

_Shit!_

End of Chapter 5

**

* * *

End Notes**

"See? I gave you one of your lemons. Now will you leave me alone so that I can write the next one?"

"You think you can escape so easily?"

"_Easily_? Are you saying that you didn't like the lemon?! How dare you ... you ... ungrateful baka! Do you think it was easy to write it?!"

"Who cares about the lemon?!"

"Oh, really? So you didn't like licking and sucking that oh so precious little foot of hers? I don't remember hearing you complain at the time!"

His eyes glazed over and he gulped remembering those sweet moments before he shook his head and snarled at her once more. "Keh! Do you think I'm _that_ stupid? I saw what you wrote in there!"

Confused, she cocked her head to one side as she pondered what was in the new chapter that irritated the half-demon so much. Coming up with nothing, she whispered, "What in God's name are you talking about?"

Pointing to the monitor with one clawed hand, he shouted, "Fuck! That other stupid story of yours! That's what I'm fucking talking about!"

"My other story? You mean Heartless?" Her eyes widened in realization before narrowing down to slits with barely suppressed fury. "Inuyasha! Did you spy on my new chapter?"

He flinched visibly, his ears drooping down to get lost in his unruly mane. "What if I did?"

"You jerk! You can't just sneak around and read my personal documents. That's rude!"

"Oh, yeah?! And you messing with my life is not?!"

Caught off-guard, her retort died on her lips. Composing herself quickly, she turned her nose up to protect what little dignity she had left. "I don't want to argue with you anymore."

"What the fuck?!" The incredulity in his voice almost made her cringe ... almost.

Unfazed by the anger radiating off of the hanyou, she continued in a clipped tone, "You heard me. Now if you be a good boy and just shut up, I might consider making things right for you."

"Why you little..." He stopped short seeing the hard look in the young woman's eyes, telling him that she was indeed serious. With a loud growl, he clenched his fists before plopping down onto a cushion. Crossing his arms on his chest, he opted to glare at her as if he could control her mind if he tried hard enough.

Rolling her eyes at his childish antics, she turned her back on him and focused on the dreaded chapter the hanyou had been complaining about. Reading once more what she had already written, she confessed to herself that Dogboy was not completely unjustified in his outburst. The problem was.... How was she going to get him out of this mess? She sighed miserably before scolding herself. _That's what you get if you insist on writing angst ..._


	6. It Wasn't a Dream?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga. I do not make any money by writing this story. However, the name 'S-android' and this story are products of _my_ imagination, meaning they belong to _me_. Ha!

**Author's Notes:** Here comes one more apology for the impossibly late update. Honestly, aren't you tired of reading the same notes from me over and over? Life has a way of surprising you when you least expect it, and mine did just that, rendering me incapable of writing for a long time. Luckily, I finally settled down after traveling overseas for months and then moving twice (once in-state, once out-of-state). I have more opportunities to write now and I should be updating faster. But then again, if I were you, I wouldn't take my word for it. 

Before you move on to the story, I should let you know that I absolutely dislike giving away spoilers because it ruins the surprise, which is a major element in a story if you ask me. And to me, these warnings are nothing but spoilers, but I have to give them to be safe. So, here it goes…

**Warning:** Unreasonably horny S-androids and explicit descriptions of sexual activities.

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_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree._

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**Chapter 6: It Wasn't a Dream?**

Dawn was fast approaching, but the first lights of the yellow sun were far from chasing away the shadows in the old districts of the city once known as Tokyo. A tall, slim figure wrapped in a cloak darker than the shadows flew over an abandoned building and landed in an alley with deadly grace. The long garment made no noise as its bearer stealthily approached the alley's entrance. Under its hood, two golden orbs flashed in the darkness.

The cloaked figure inhaled once before ceasing to breathe completely. The inhabitants of this miserable planet — humans, as they called themselves — were indeed pathetic. They were not only weak and useless beings, but also stinky little creatures. How they managed to survive with all these nauseating odors surrounding them was beyond his imagination. Snorting in disgust and careful not to touch the moss covered wall, he gave his attention to the worn out, tall building across the street that had obviously seen better days.

It had been hard to find this place — harder than he had anticipated. The scent trail had been washed away or covered by humanoid odors at some places, and whenever it had, he had circled the perimeter until he had caught it again. After spending all night in search of the notorious half-demon's final location, the unique scent he had followed led him to this place.

As he watched, two bulky, bald men exited the building, carrying a long box that was large enough to contain a well-built human male. _Or a hanyou._ His eyes narrowed in suspicion, and he sniffed deeply to catch the object's scent before they loaded it to the transporter. _Hmm… Mostly metal and some form of organism. Definitely not a hanyou_.

He waited until the humans disappeared into the vehicle before he made his move. Flying over to the open door with lightening speed, he entered the building. He was met with the putrid odor of humidity and concrete stairs that spiraled upwards until one couldn't count the floors. Following the faint but certain scent of the half-breed, he jumped up three stories at a time and ended up at the top floor.

Two doors laid on the right of the stairway and two on the left. In the middle, a set of double doors shined in front of him. Following his nose, he turned to his right and stopped in front of a metal door. His ears caught the voice of a man approaching the door from the other side. Not wanting to waste time with useless confrontations, he slid to a narrow passage at the end of the corridor that opened up to a fire exit.

As he watched from the corner, a young human male with dark hair tied at the base of his neck exited the apartment. "Look," the man said exasperatedly. He was talking to the small device secured in his ear with a thin extension to his mouth. He locked the door to the apartment with a single press of his finger on the control panel next to the doorframe. "I managed to fool security, but if the others come in here, they won't miss my goodies. And I'm not willing to try and bribe those devious creatures into keeping my secret."

Standing in front of the double doors, he pushed one more button and started waiting for the ancient contraption to reach the floor as he continued to listen to the person rant on the other side of his small ear device. As if he sensed something, the young man looked toward where the intruder was hiding. Poison flared green at the tip of sharp claws as the alien prepared to behead the stupid human if need be. Luckily for the little bastard, the elevator chose that moment to announce its arrival with a soft hiss. Shaking his head, the man entered the tiny space.

"Too late, Mushin," he heard the human say as the doors closed. "I've already loaded everything and I'm on my way."

When the coast was clear, he stood once again in front of the door and merely raised his eyebrow at the lock that dared to stand in his way. With a few small drops of poison from his claws, the miserable metal melted away. Pushing the door open, he stepped in.

He took a deep breath and instantly cursed, noticing the absence of the hanyou. He searched the rotten place and ended up at a door that led to open space. This was where his prey had last set foot upon.

The interesting part was that the half-breed hadn't been alone. He had left with two women. One of them was an ordinary human — as stinky as they came. And the other was… He sniffed more carefully to identify the source of the third fragrance. Perhaps for the first time in his life, the dog demon's eyes widened in surprise. Was there something called destiny or were the gods making fun of him? He snorted, the sound barely audible even by his own ears. Sesshoumaru did not believe in such a thing as destiny. _This must be a cosmic joke._

He could extend his aura to find the half-breed; it would be easy to sense him if he was not far away since they were both dog demons. But then, there was a chance that the hanyou could sense his presence and leave the hole he was hiding in, forcing Sesshoumaru to chase him to God knew where this time. This was going to take more time than he would like. Clenching his jaw in frustration, he contacted his ship.

"Jaken."

"My Lord Sesshoumaru!" cried out a high-pitched voice.

"Confirm my location. Find every single ship that departed this place about…," he trailed off and inhaled deeply before continuing, "…two weeks ago. Send me a list of all the stops they made. You have two minutes."

"Yes, my Lord!" squeaked Jaken before his so-called lord cut the connection off.

Looking out to the city, Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. "Soon, Inuyasha."

* * *

The first thing Inuyasha noticed as awareness stirred his senses was the delectable aroma gracing his nostrils. It was amazing how very sweet that scent was. It smelled of him, of her and of… _Sex? No, that's not possible. I must be dreaming. But, damn! What a dream!_

He sniffed once again and sighed in contentment. He tightened his hold on the pillow he had been clutching to his chest. The pillow moaned, and he caressed its silky, sweaty fabric in a soothing motion. His hand froze as the oddness of the situation dawned on him. _A moaning pillow? What the…?_

His eyes snapped open only to be met with the metallic ceiling of the dimly lit room. It was still night, and he was lying down. Why was he lying down? He should have been sitting up against the wall like he had been doing everynight for the last two weeks. He blinked in confusion before a slight movement atop his upper body and the warmth of soft breathing on his neck brought his gaze to the 'pillow' in his arms.

Long ebony tresses fanned over his chest in luscious waves. A delicate, creamy arm was wrapped around his torso possessively. He could feel one of her legs lying between his thighs beneath the sheets. He couldn't see her eyes since they were buried in his neck but he could feel her eyelashes lightly tickle his skin. _Kagome._ She was sleeping in his arms — _naked_.

It hadn't been a dream.

A huge grin broke through his features at the memory of last night before the implications of his actions dampened his mood. He was in deep shit. No doubt, she was going to have a fit when she woke up. What was she going to do to him? Send him to be recycled? He cringed at that thought before forcing himself to relax. He would undoubtedly face the music when the time came, but until then, he was going to savor the moment.

With that thought in mind, he took a deep breath and instantly regretted it. The air was so thick with their combined fragrances, it was intoxicating. He felt the telltale beginnings of arousal in his lower regions. With an urgent need for distraction, he turned his attention to the girl's face. He tried his best to ignore the all too pleasant feeling of her leg pressing against his inner thighs while he lightly combed her hair with his claws. It was nice, he would admit, having her in his arms. He was going to miss this feeling once he finally left.

As he carefully pushed her silky mane to lie on her back, he noticed a red spot on the otherwise perfect skin of her neck. Frowning, he examined it more closely. _A bite mark? What the fuck?!_ He blinked, hoping that he was hallucinating, but the two points where sharp fangs had pierced her flesh did not disappear. He would have cursed, at least mentally, if there was a word in the seven languages he spoke to adequately describe his shock.*

He had _bitten_ her.

Why had he bitten her? Surely, he had spent many nights filled with passion before, but never had he acted so aggressively. _Why now? Why her?_ Come to think of it, he had never transformed during sex before. That revelation brought out a humorless chuckle from the hanyou. It seemed that when he transformed, he was a monster regardless of where he was — even in bed.

Heaving a sigh, he carefully brushed the tips of his claws over the proof of his loss of control. The girl moaned softly and snuggled closer to him. He immediately stiffened when her hip pressed against his erection. A second later, the vertiginous scent of her arousal wafted through his nose — the scent that had caused him to lose control in the first place.

He had to get out. He had to distance himself from her before a replay of last night occurred. Besides, it wouldn't be wise to be in the danger zone when she found out what had happened.

Careful not to wake the girl, he slowly untangled their limbs and stood up. She whimpered in her sleep at the loss of his warmth before hugging his pillow instead. He couldn't keep the smile off his face as she sniffed once and with a soft sigh buried her nose into the pillow.

His amusement died the moment his gaze landed on her partially covered torso. Despite the curtain of her midnight tresses flowing down her back in soft waves, he could see the curve of her spine arching down on her narrow waist only to rise with the swell of her cute bottom beneath the sheets. Combined with the fragrance in the air, it was too much. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, digging his claws into his palms, as he made a mad dash for the bathroom.

Once the door closed behind him, he took a deep breath and sighed in relief when all he could smell was the lingering perfume of shampoos. He sagged against the door and shook his head in irritation. _What the fuck is wrong with me?_ He had been around more beautiful women before and he hadn't even given them a glance. He had fucked sexier women and hadn't returned for a second round. He had thought it would be the same with her. He had thought he would be free of her inexplicable pull on him once he had her.

He had been wrong.

Why had he been wrong? How was it that her scent still affected him so much? He swept his hand over his face in frustration and decided to think about something — anything — other than his misery. It was then that he noticed what he had been looking at but not seeing for the past few minutes. _The bathtub._ Before he could even blink, the two encounters he had had with the source of his current problem in that very spot flashed before his mind's eye, and he found himself getting painfully excited again. _Fucking great! As if I needed that reminder!_

Growling, he pushed off the door and entered the shower cabinet. Hoping that a cold shock would repair his damaged control over his reactions, he turned on the water. He stood still as the cascade of cool water pounded on his heated skin, washing the maddening remnants of her scent away.

_Absolutely maddening._ It had such a strong effect on him that he had lost his mind; he had turned to a full demon. But somehow, his transformation had been different this time. The last time, he had almost killed Miroku. Why was it that he hadn't been filled with blood-lust last night? Perhaps, the fact that he had been blinded by a different kind of lust had something to do with it.

He smirked as he passed a hand through his wet locks, but it was soon replaced by a frown. He had wanted to protect her from himself only a few days ago. What did she do to him to make him forget about anything and everything but the desire to fuck her senseless? How did she render him so weak? And how did he let her do it?

He had promised not to touch her if she did not ask him to, and he broke that promise. But, did he really? After all, she had called out to him; he could remember that much. That was as good as an invitation, wasn't it? He shook his head at his pathetic attempts to justify himself. It didn't matter if she called out to him; she hadn't been in her right mind.

The truth was that he had stolen something from her while she had done nothing but give him a place to hide. Despite being the thief that he was, even he wasn't low enough to steal from those weaker than himself. "It was only sex," he whispered to himself. He knew it. It meant nothing more than the fulfillment of their bodies' basic needs. It was natural. It was as insignificant as eating, right? _Damn right._

_Then, why do I feel like fucking shit?_

Perhaps, it was because he knew that it was different for her. It was her first time. No matter how insignificant it was for him — and, it _was_ insignificant, dammit! — he had stolen her most precious treasure, a treasure he couldn't give back even if he wanted to.

_And, since when have I become such an honorable bastard?_

He snorted at that thought as he turned the water from cold to hot and started scrubbing his chest. _I'm not. I'm nowhere near honorable. I'm a fucking thief, dammit! It's about damn time I got over this._ Locking his unwelcome thoughts and rarely felt guilt at the back of his mind, he focused on what his next step was going to be. What was going to happen now? _It'll be best to sneak off before she wakes up and finds out what happened._

* * *

After the bathroom door closed with a soft hiss, the lone occupant of the bed stirred slightly. Long black eyelashes fluttered open, revealing two azure orbs dazed with sleep. Moaning softly, the girl nuzzled the pillow wrapped in her arms as if it was someone's chest. _So soft... too soft._ One creamy hand came out, searching to no avail for hard muscles, long tresses and fuzzy dog ears.

Kagome blinked in disorientation before she recognized the white cloth of her pillow. She took in a deep breath — _Hmm, it smells nice_ — and let it out with a sigh as she turned to lie on her back.

_He's not in bed. He's never been._ She felt the pang of disappointment when she realized that it had been a dream. _Of course it was a dream, stupid!_ Since when did she have the courage to call him to bed? She was a coward — afraid of her own desires. But, wasn't it the best dream she had ever had? A shy smile crept up her face as she digested that revelation. _Yes, it was. It was even better than the one I had the night before._

Blushing madly, she pulled the sheet more tightly around her nude torso. _Nude?_ She looked down only to find herself naked in bed, the sheet being the only censure protecting her modesty. With a squeak, she shot up in bed. Ashamed of her nudity, she clutched the white fabric to her chest and frantically searched for Yash.

Her gaze landed on the empty corner where the S-android was supposed to be. Her shoulders sagged, and she sighed in relief now that she knew her beloved robot was not peeping at her. _Thank God, he's not here._

Suddenly, she gasped. _Not here? But, where...?_ She looked around, this time hoping to catch a glimpse of the silver of his hair. He was indeed not in the room. Panic swelled in her chest, making it hard to breathe. Terrifying possibilities bombarded her mind as she started hyperventilating. Where could he have gone? Had security found him? Had they taken him away while she had been asleep? That wasn't possible, was it? She would have heard.... But, what if they had? What would happen to him then? Would they terminate him? _Oh, God! What am I going to do?!_

Against her distracting thoughts, her ears caught the faint sound of the shower coming from the bathroom. Understanding dawned on her, and she relaxed. He was in the shower. He was _safe_. Once her breathing returned to normal, a small smile pulled up the corners of her lips. Her expensive companion was taking good care of himself.

Noticing that it was still too early, she flanked herself back to the bed and winced as her muscles protested. What was wrong with her? She felt sore everywhere, especially down _there_. And come to think of it, why was she naked? She could remember wearing her pajamas before going to bed but she couldn't recall taking them off. _As if someone else had...._ Her mind went back to her dream where sharp claws had cut her clothes swiftly as she had writhed in passion, and she froze. _Oh! Oh, God!_

She sprang up again, throwing the sheets away. A dark red spot immediately caught her attention when she looked down. _Blood._ There was blood on her bed. With trembling hands, she reached down and traced the dried stain with her fingertips. _My blood?_

It hadn't been a dream.

Numbness came first with that realization. She didn't know where she was or what she was doing there as she sat on her bed still as a statue. _I had sex with my S-android._ Her mind repeated that thought over and over until her senses came back to life. Her chest tightened then, and her eyes pricked with tears threatening to fall down at any moment. _I had sex with my S-android._ Each time she repeated it, the heaviness of sadness gave way to the turmoil of anger. _I had sex with my S-android…_

…_and it had been my first time._

Her eyes caught a glimpse of black by the foot of her bed, and without thinking, she reached for it. Snatching the S-android's overalls, she placed them on her lap. She glared at the offending object, her chest heaving with her rapidly rising anger. _Why that little…!_ What had he been thinking? She was going to kill that robot once she got her hands on him.

Clenching the garment in her hands, she whimpered as she tried to tear it apart. The fabric wouldn't rip even with her hardest tugs, and soon, she gave up with a huff. Who was she kidding? She couldn't hurt a fly let alone hurt her most precious possession.

With the overalls still lying in her lap, she pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. She couldn't believe it. She had sex for the first time in her life with a robot. She was at a loss as to what to feel about it. Her emotions were a jumbled mass, and she couldn't decide which one was more potent. Sadness because she lost her innocence? Anger because he had been the cause of it? Relief because she had wanted him since she had lain eyes on him but was too much of a coward to do anything about it?

Huffing in frustration, she grabbed his clothes from her lap. Narrowing her eyes, she glared at the inanimate object as if it was the cause of her problems. But, once his lingering scent hit her nose, she felt her irritation melt. A faint sparkle caught her attention, and she found a strand of long silver hair on the dark fabric. Holding it between two fingers, she couldn't help but remember how he let her comb his hair and pet those adorable ears of his. A small smile softened her features.

_No, _she thought to herself as she reveled in the memory of his silky mane under her fingers and the peaceful expression that would grace his handsome face under her touch.

_No. I had sex with _Yash_._

Somehow, thinking of him as a person rather than an emotionless machine made her feel better. Somehow, it hurt less when she considered what they had done as one more thing she had shared with the only person she practically lived with.

But still, she couldn't comprehend how it happened. Robots did not have urges. They only did what they were told to do. Besides, he had made it clear that he would not touch her unless she asked him to. Robots did not lie. Was it possible that she had asked him to do _that _with her? Could she have called out to him while she was dreaming? It wouldn't be the first time she talked in her sleep; her grandfather had once mentioned that she had done it occasionally.

_Oh, God! Grandpa would have a heart attack if he were alive._

That thought brought out a new onslaught of tears, but she willed them away. She must have talked in her sleep. It was either that or Yash was malfunctioning. Could that be the case? _But, it didn't feel like he was malfunctioning last night. In fact, if felt like he was functioning perfectly._ She felt her cheeks flame at that thought.

In either case, she had no one but herself to blame. She was a fool for accepting that S-android as a gift. With the way her body responded to his presence and those dreams she had been having, this was bound to happen sooner or later. Now, she had lost her virginity and she didn't even remember it. _Well, not all of it._

She could recall a few memories regarding his tongue, her foot and other parts of her body, his claws and his… She squealed in shame and hid her burning face in her hands, but the images would not leave her mind. The way his muscles rippled over her, the gentleness of his claws as he caressed her, the completeness she felt as he filled her… And then, there were his eyes. They hadn't been their usual golden color that she adored. They had been blood-red. Were they supposed to be like that when he was performing his duties? Even though she liked it, she would prefer to see his golden orbs the next time. _The next time._ Just the thought of it sent a new wave of heat through her body.

* * *

Water continued to pour down from the shower head as Inuyasha hurriedly scrubbed his mane, determined to make his move and high tail out of this place as soon as possible. He hissed when the shampoo stung his ear. _What the hell?_ Quickly rinsing his hair, he felt for the twitching appendage on his head. He gingerly passed his fingers over his ear only to find that it was marred. As he carefully massaged the abused organ to relieve some of the pain, memories from last night flooded back to his mind, and he felt the calming effect of the cold water on his lower regions disappear.

She had bitten him _on the ear_.

His _right_ ear.

_Dammit! I knew that ear was cursed!_

_

* * *

Hmm… Come to think of it, red suits him too. Makes him look more dangerous._ Kagome rolled her eyes at her errant thoughts. _As if my only problem was the color of his eyes when he was…_ She growled as her mind went back to _that_ action again. _Oh, God! Stop thinking about it, stupid!_ Deciding to distract herself in any way possible, she flung her legs off the bed. Still flushed with excitement and embarrassment, she wrapped the sheet around her body and stood up.

She gasped as an intense desire coursed through her body, quickly turning into an aching need that pooled between her legs. Her knees buckled and she fell back on to the bed. She sat there until her heartbeat slowed down and her breathing returned to normal. _What was that?_

Befuddled, the young woman stood up slowly. Once she was sure that her legs wouldn't betray her, she made her way to the mirror, a tingling sensation still lingering in her lower regions. It felt almost like the longing she had felt last night while his lips and tongue had explored her body thoroughly. She groaned and tried to concentrate on her image in the mirror.

Her hair was tousled, and her lips were a nice shade of crimson. Her gaze traveled lower and fell on a red spot on her neck. _A bite mark? Wow. Miroku wasn't kidding when he said that Yash had been made for those with 'different tastes.'_ She giggled before refocusing her attention on her bruised flesh. She touched it carefully only to find out that it wasn't as bad as it seemed. Now that she thought about it, she could remember exactly when it happened and how good it felt to have him inside her in more ways than one. Her breathing picked up, and her fingers continued to caress the marks as the longing she felt intensified thanks to her treacherous mind.

She jumped when a loud thump echoed in the room. It took her a few seconds to realize where the noise came from. Once she did, she rushed to the bathroom in a panic.

* * *

Inuyasha was just finished in the shower and was about to get out when the strangest thing happened. One second, he was wringing his hair and in the next, stars exploded behind his eyelids and he gasped as its waves hit him in the form of a consuming desire that spread through his whole being before gathering in his loins. His legs gave out under him, and with a loud thump, he found himself on his hands and knees. He was so stunned and so incredibly aroused that he couldn't even bring himself to curse.

Only after taking several deep breaths was he able to think again. _What the fuck was that?!_ Supporting himself by the wall, he managed to get to his feet. Stupefied, he shakily exited the shower. He looked down at his painfully hard erection, standing tall and proud as if he hadn't had any action in years, and cursed profusely. _Fuck! Now, I'll have to deal with that!_ He passed a hand through his wet bangs in frustration. He fucked the girl only a few hours ago, dammit! How many times did he have to jerk off in this damned place because of _her_?

It was then that he heard a gasp and looked up to see Kagome standing there, clad in the sheets they had rolled over last night, and the scent of their coupling wafting from her skin.

He gulped.

* * *

Kagome stood frozen at the sight before her. She hadn't thought before she barged in to the bathroom. And now, she seemed to have completely lost the ability to think. How could she, when the 'God of Sex' stood in front of her in all his glory, the mist from his earlier shower still permeating the air around him and making him look even more surreal?

She greedily drank in the sight of him as her gaze traveled up and down the masterpiece that was her S-android. Droplets of water ran down his muscled legs. His manhood was standing erect proudly. _Oh, my… I've never noticed before. Does it always stay like that?_ Perfectly defined abs rippled with the slightest movement, and his biceps performed a hypnotizing dance as his fists doubled and relaxed. His toned chest glistened with moisture as it rose and fell rapidly, almost feverishly. His Adam's apple bobbed, pulling her gaze upwards. His jaw was clenched, and his full lips were clasped in a thin line. And then, there were his eyes — molten lava burning with an inner fire that ignited a now familiar heat in her veins as he pierced something deep within her with his gaze. With his gaze…

He was watching her.

She gasped.

Suddenly overcame with embarrassment, she whirled away. Her heart drummed in her ears, and she placed her hand on her chest, over the fluttering butterfly in it. Forcing herself to relax, she slowly let her breath out.

"I-I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to… to..." she stammered, feeling the heat rush to her cheeks. _Oh, God. Look at me. I'm pathetic! After last night, I still manage to blush! Last night…_ With that remembrance, anger came back. She turned to him with a huff and forgetting about his nakedness, she poked his chest with her finger, her eyes narrowed to slits.

"I will have you know, mister," she said as she continued to poke him — hard. "If you were alive, it wouldn't last long. I would kill you for what you did last night, if you were not a robot."

Hearing that, the S-android visibly stiffened and took a step back. Kagome unconsciously followed him and rose on her tiptoes as if she could be more intimidating if she reduced their prominent difference in height. Latching onto his forelocks, she forced his face closer as she glared up at him and asked, "Did you hear me?"

He nodded wordlessly, and his gaze flickered to her slightly pouting lips. Suddenly, she became aware of the warmth radiating off of him to her face and her chest that pushed against him with every gusty breath she took. And just like that, her emotions shifted once again from anger to excitement combined with a hint of panic and embarrassment. Before she knew what she was doing, she blurted out, "I-I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy it." Her eyes widened at her unexpected confession and flustered, she quickly added, "But that doesn't mean I'm okay with what happened!"

She quickly looked down and gulped nervously. She was still standing too close to him — so close that she could almost taste his dazzling fragrance on her tongue. Taking a step back, she gave him a timid smile. "I guess it's a good thing that you're a robot. Now, I don't have to kill you."

Her pitiful attempt at joking was more for her comfort then his amusement, and as expected, the S-android did not even bat an eye. Did robots have a sense of humor? That thought brought forth the lingering sadness she had oppressed before. _Is it really a good thing that he's not real? Do I even know the difference anymore?_

Her eyes stung with a new wave of tears. The S-android cocked his head to one side and watched her as if trying to read her mind. She shrugged and smiled wistfully before murmuring more to herself, "I sometimes wish that you were not a machine, that you were real. Then, everything between us could be real." Meeting his eyes, she stammered, "O-our friendship, I mean." She lowered her gaze to the floor, unable to look at him lest he saw the tears gathering on the corners of her eyes. _Things would have been perfect if he was real._

The words that came with his husky voice put an end to her embarrassment, only to replace it with shock. "I _am_ real..."

* * *

"I _am_ real…"

The moment those words left his lips, she gasped, and her head shot up to meet his smoldering gaze with her surprised one. _Shit! What the fuck did I say?_

All he had wanted to do was to chase away the sadness in her voice, and before he knew it, he had said the most stupid thing he could have. _What now, dammit?_ He had to undo the damage he had given so carelessly. Racking his brain as to what to do, he cleared his throat almost inaudibly. He was nervous; nervous wouldn't do. He had to keep his calm. After all, he was supposed to be a damn robot.

Trying to act nonchalant, he raised his hand to push a block of dark tresses behind her ear. _I'm a fucking pro! I can pull this off!_ Never breaking his eye contact with the girl, he gently cupped her cheek and whispered, "...when I'm with you."

Time stood still as he waited for her reaction, praying that she bought it. _Come on, girl! I can't escape this damned place in broad daylight. So, don't make me._ Holding his breath, he watched her eyes focus on each of his as they moved repeatedly. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head and the emotions swirling in her blue orbs as they searched his guarded ones. Finally, just when he was about to break down and run away without looking back, she smiled. "You're right," she whispered. "You _are_ real to me, and that's more than enough."

Relief came first, closely followed by joy now that he was off the hook. Her smile must have been infectuous because a huge grin broke through his features. The next thing he knew, he was crushing her lips under his. He couldn't help it; she was too kissable when she was being nice, which was practically all the time.

He would have pulled back, and it would have ended there if the vixen she was morphing into hadn't kissed him back with equal ferocity; if her dainty arms hadn't sneaked around his neck and her petite fingers hadn't tangled within his hair, urging him to get closer; if the treacherous sheet hadn't fallen down and exposed her warm skin to his still wet one; if his naughty hands hadn't found her tiny waist and started roaming her back up and down boldly; or if the traitor between his legs hadn't insisted on standing upright since before she entered the room. Unfortunately, as messed up as this situation was, all of these things happened at once, and he lost what little desire he had not to take advantage of his position.

His free hand found her disheveled hair and tugged at the silky strands softly. She moaned into the kiss, and he eagerly swallowed the sound, feeling its tremors travel down his chest to the spot that ached for her the most. He had kissed her before and he knew exactly what she tasted like. However, that didn't stop the groan that escaped him when his tongue slipped inside her only to be hesitantly welcomed by her inexperienced one. As he ravished her sweetness like a hungry dog, she got braver and her soft appendage stroked him gently but surely, teasing him in the sweetest way he had ever experienced.

Letting go of his hair, one of her hands slowly glided down his neck to his shoulder and then lower. She let her fingertips wander along the hard planes of his chest. His breath caught in his throat as she circled his hardened nipple in an agonizingly slow manner. Trailing further down, her curious fingers finally got acquainted with his abs and started a torturous exploration of the taut muscles. He stiffened at her scorching touch and pushed his hips forward reflexively, groaning in pleasure — or was it agony?

He was quickly coming undone, losing all the ties he had left with reality. Deep down, he knew there was a part of him that was still capable of conscious thought. Even after he pressed her delicate frame to the wall, held her leg up and around his waist, and felt his engorged length poke against her belly, it was not too late. The small part of him he had pushed to the back of his mind was still capable of putting an end to this madness and leaving the poor girl alone. However, that tiny little Inuyasha with a halo atop his head disappeared with a 'poof' the moment the girl's fingers got a hold of his injured ear. _The devil's horn. That's what that damned ear is._ At her touch, another star exploded behind his closed eyelids, and the now familiar surge of intense desire rushed through his veins once more, extracting a gasp from the unsuspecting half-demon and bringing him down to his knees with the girl on his lap.

_Now_, it was too late. Now, he couldn't stop even if he wanted to, and for the life of him, he _didn't_ want to. Luckily, the girl didn't seem to mind it as she wrapped her legs around his hips and trailed kisses down his jaw to his neck. Sitting back on his heels, he laid his arms around her waist and tried to catch his breath, but it was turning out to be impossible as her lips traced down his chest and came dangerously close to his nipple. Her frenzied movements created a much welcomed friction between their bodies, eliciting a gasp from her and a groan from him when his member pulsed against her core for more. Did she even know what she was doing to him? He had to know.

"Look at me," he growled out warningly. Halting her ministrations, she looked up immediately, her brows furrowed in confusion. Grasping her hips, he moved her over his erection up and down once. He gulped, his ears catching the sound of her slick folds sliding over his sensitive flesh. Her eyes closed in ecstasy, and she bit her lip. She whimpered after he did it again for the second time. A satisfied growl built up in his chest and a moan escaped him when her heat slid over him for the third time; the third time was all her doing.

His question answered, he claimed her lips once more before moving down to her neck. His lips soon found the spot where he had bitten last night, and in apology, he kissed the bruised flesh gently before lightly licking it. Her reaction to his gesture caught him off guard. He might have expected a soft hiss of discomfort or a whimper of pain. But, he definitely did not expect her to cry out his name or to press herself more firmly to him, frantically rocking her hips over him. He almost choked at the sharp increase of the scent of her arousal in the air.

Trying to regain his senses, he sat still for a few moments while Kagome continued to writhe in his arms, driving him crazy with her movements. The friction was nice, too nice in fact, but it was far from being satisfying. He needed more. _Now!_ Her scent was teasing him, taunting him to the point of madness. If they continued like this, it was going to kill him. With an impatient growl, he lifted her up.

When her gaze — trusting without any reserves and filled with desire — touched his and held it tightly, he knew that this girl was going to be his undoing. But, try as he might, he couldn't look away as he slowly sank into her inch by delicious inch. Once he was deeply buried in her, he let his forehead rest on her shoulder and hugged her waist tightly to keep himself from pounding into her. Her breathing was shaky and broken, but she was not in pain. Her scent as well as her death hold around his neck told him as much. His memories of last night didn't do her justice. Inside her, it was heaven; outside, quickly turning to hell.

He captured her lips once more as his hands traced down her hips to her rear. He squeezed the supple flesh once before he started moving her up and down his length, eliciting a delighted moan from the girl. Pulling away from her lips, he watched mesmerized as her face contorted in pleasure. Her breasts bouncing against his chest broke his trance, and leaning down, he captured one pert nipple in his mouth. She gasped and tightened her hold on his neck as he sucked the hardened nub and rolled it around with his tongue. He looked up in surprise when she started rolling her hips in time with his thrusts.

This was even better than last night; she was fully awake and knew what she was doing, and so was he, and it doubled his excitement if that was even possible. The way she moved above and around him so sensuously, the way she received him so greedily, the way she lost herself in his arms so wantonly… If he hadn't been the one to take her virginity, he wouldn't have believed that she was new at this. Was she really the girl that turned beet red every time their hands accidentally touched? The contrast was so deep, so unbelievable; he had to squeeze her harder to make sure that she was real. Now, as his hips rose up with each powerful thrust, causing her legs to dangle helplessly around his continuously clenching and relaxing ones, the blush that covered her entire body was of a different kind, and he fucking _loved_ it.

Each time she descended on him like a blessing, he could swear he died and passed through the gates of heaven over and over. Something powerful was building inside him, getting dangerously close to exploding with each thrust of his hips and numbing his senses. For a moment, he forgot where he was or who he was. There was only the girl in his arms — this magnificent creature that smelled like ambrosia stolen from the gods' goblet — and the way it felt to be inside her, to be enveloped by her so tightly, to be welcomed so warmly.

Sweat broke through his forehead, rolling down his temples in tiny droplets. Each time he pulled out of her, he craved to be inside of her, and each time he slammed into her, he craved for the next one. If he was going to die in her arms, so be it.

"Yash!"

He gasped as the girl threw her head back and screamed his name. Her muscles clenched around him almost brutally, pushing him over the cliff. With a roar, he cried out his release before his jaw locked over the bruised flesh on her neck. He hugged her waist tightly as he continued to pulse in her.

Her arms still around his neck, she buried her face in his hair as she sagged in his embrace. She was so far gone, she didn't so much as flinch when he let go of her skin and tenderly licked the proof of his loss of control — for the second time. _Damn it. Did she even notice what I did?_

Regaining her breath, Kagome raised her head and looked at him shyly. "I can't believe we did it again," she said before she started giggling.

A smirk pulled one side of his mouth up when he realized that she had been too lost in pleasure to notice that he had bitten her again. That soon turned to a relieved smile seeing that she wasn't freaking out after their rather passionate activities.

Still giggling, she tweaked his ear, calling him a 'bad S-android.' Then, to soothe the area, she massaged it between two fingers.

The hanyou's eyes had widened and profanities bombarded his mind even before her fingers touched him. To his immense dismay, it was his cursed ear that she chose to tease. _Is she left-handed or something?_ Before he could ponder anything else, fireworks went off in his veins, leaving him incapable of thinking let alone stopping her. Still buried deep inside her, he instantly hardened, eliciting a gasp from the girl. His eyes rolled back, and he groaned before crushing his lips on hers.

She pulled back after a while and breathlessly whispered, "I think I need a hot bath."

"Yes, you do," he agreed before adding with a haughty smirk, "…Mistress."

She gasped at the unwelcome name. "Did you already forget what I told you about calling me _that_?"

"I'm a robot. I do not forget, Ka-go-me." He enforced each syllable of her name with a thrust of his hips, eliciting two gasps and finally a loud moan from the girl as she threw her head back.

Standing up, he carried her to the bathtub. _The bathtub. Keh! About fucking time…_

* * *

The house of the Tajiyas was a large structure of several floors located in the most respectable part of New Tokyo. The top three stories were reserved for the private use of Senator Tajiya and his family. Officers, soldiers and the household staff occupied the rest of the building. With the first rays of the sun, the house slowly came to life, robots and humans going about their business. In a short time, the lowest floors that were used as sleeping quarters for the human staff were completely deserted — except for one room.

If one was to enter the small bedroom located on the west wing of the second floor, they would have heard the periodic splashes of water coming from the bathroom along with the occasional thumps and needy moans. They would have also seen the little pink ball left in one corner of the room flare brightly after an especially loud couple of cries and then become a dull pink as tiny specs of light dispersed into the air like fireflies and then disappeared. Unfortunately, the only occupants of the tiny room were too busy in the tub to witness this rather spectacular show.

About half an hour later, the 'S-android' exited the bathroom, water dripping from his long silver mane. His equally wet mistress was safely nestled in his arms. The girl wore a huge smile as she dreamily gazed upon his smoldering golden orbs. She gently pushed his wet bangs away from his forehead and trailed her fingers down his temple to slowly trace his jaw line. Her touch was as soft as a feather's. Then, she leaned up and pressed her lips on his equally swollen ones.

Her fingers left his face and sneaked up to his ear once again — she was quickly becoming used to this — making his knees buckle and leaving him unsure of what to think. He couldn't figure out what the deal was between her hands and his ears, but he loved it for the intense sensations it made him experience like he had never done before and hated it for rendering him helpless against the young woman in his arms.

At the back of his mind, he was aware that he shouldn't have been enjoying himself. He shouldn't have let himself be blindsided by a girl. Instead, he should have been plotting his escape from this make shift heaven before it turned into hell. In fact, he should have left days ago. But, for the love of God and anything else that was dear to him — which wasn't much, mind you —, he couldn't bring himself to think about leaving now, especially not when her little tongue turned out to be so promising. As he carried his precious cargo to the bed, one final thought crossed his mind before he ceased thinking completely.

_Damn… I guess it wouldn't hurt to stay for a few more days._

* * *

Rin looked over to the ruined piece of land where the hanyou's ship had crashed and to the wolf demons dressed in tight black leather and metal armor. They had landed half an hour ago, and now Kouga's soldiers were scanning the area for a clue to the fugitive's whereabouts. She would admit, in spite of their ridiculous tails swishing behind them, they looked intimidating with their leather gear and guns.

As she watched, small groups of troops took off in different directions under the commander's orders. "Ginta! Hakkaku! You two are with me," Kouga shouted before turning to Rin. "And you, girl. You'll follow us," he ordered, causing the said girl to roll her eyes before giving a curt nod.

Looking ahead, the wolf demon took his gun from his belt and caressed it absentmindedly as he took a deep sniff. A nasty smirk graced his handsome face before he muttered, "Let's hunt."

**End of Chapter 6**

*I owe this expression to Hedanicree and her super fun status messages.


	7. Staggering Awakenings

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha, nor do I make any money by writing this story.

**Author's note:** What can I say? Better late than never, right? Sorry!

**Warning:** Lemon and a little blood and gore.

* * *

_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree.

* * *

_

**Chapter 7: Staggering Awakenings**

The scarce furniture in the small room glowed dimly as tiny, pink beads of light flickered and danced in the air, casting restless shadows in their wake. In the middle of it all was a modest bed, where the fugitive lay with the young maid, unaware and uncaring of the world outside. The dog ears atop his head were focused on every little sound she made — her ragged breathing, the soft whimpers that escaped her parted lips, the erratic beating of her heart — deliberately ignoring the rest of the world. The stillness of the building was false. The silence of the night was treacherous. Shadows were ready to pounce upon him at any moment. The hanyou knew it all too well, but…

He didn't care.

He didn't care if beyond those walls was a nest of soldiers ordered to take him down on sight, neither did he care if anyone could accidentally stumble upon his illusive haven any moment and bring him to his end. Hell, he wouldn't even care if the sheets were on fire. He was already burning; what had once been a small but undeniable spark had turned into an inferno, driving him full force into the girl in his arms.

And now, all he cared about was her.

Yes, he cared for her. How could he not? His heart soared with the smiles she bestowed upon him without any reserves. His spirit moved with the lilting sound of her laughter. The twinkle in her eyes ignited his soul. The walls he had carefully built melted down with the warmth of her skin. The tenderness of her touch was what he had craved all his life. As silken tendrils of silver hair cascaded down to pool around her flushed face, curtaining them from the rest of the universe, all his eyes could see was the alluring creature writhing under his larger form. This was, without a doubt and against all the odds, his personal heaven.

"Fuck, Kagome," murmured the hanyou breathlessly, unable to contain his emotions anymore. "You're fucking beautiful."

And beautiful she was. With her dark locks sprawled upon the pillow, her skin flushed with ecstasy and her lips swollen from his kisses, she was breathtaking. She whimpered his name repeatedly as he rocked into her slowly, but steadily. Her breaths came out in pants and mingled with his as his lips hovered over hers, occasionally touching in gentle kisses.

One of her hands snaked up to his ear — a habit of hers that drove him crazy in every possible way — while her other hand drew a line of fire down his spine. He groaned in unabashed need and crashed his lips to hers, forcefully coaxing her mouth open in a silent demand that she let more of him in. He pounded into her in desperation. Her body was so soft under his, so giving, yet it was never enough. He needed to be deeper inside her to dull this ache to possess her, to be completed, to pour his soul into hers…

...to no longer be alone.

And, Kagome seemed to feel the same way as she tried to roll her hips in time with his thrusts, despite his weight on her, and clawed at his back in frustration when she couldn't. Growling, he attacked her mouth with a new surge of passion. Clamping his arm tightly around her waist, he rolled onto his back, bringing her with him. Her soft mane caressed his cheeks as she slowly sat up. Misty sapphire orbs were half-lidded in passion as they locked onto his golden ones aflame with desire. His skin tingled under her fingers, and he whimpered as if in pain from the intensity of the sensations she inflicted upon him in abandon. He watched, panting as she started a sensual dance over his hips. She threw her head back in ecstasy, offering him a tempting view of her smooth neck. The tips of her hair caressed his thighs, and the movement of her soft curves held his hungry gaze captive.

"Inu-yasha…" Hearing the sound of his full name in hushed pleas from her melodic voice almost sent the half-demon over the edge. Overcome with the urgent need to kiss those lips, to coax them into saying his name again, he reached to get a hold of her slender neck only to be met by emptiness. Before he could even blink, her scream pierced his ears and her pleasant weight on him was gone, leaving a chill on his skin in its wake.

A savage growl ripped from his chest even before he could comprehend what had just happened. He saw shadows move from the corner of his eyes as he frantically searched for her, all the while trying to gather his bearings. His vision turned red for a moment when he finally found her plastered to the wall, her arms restrained by two dark figures and a clawed hand threatening to break her neck. Her eyes were wide in shock and her lips were trembling as tears streaked down her cheeks. "No," she cried out the moment his enraged gaze met her frightened one. He leaped to his feet on the bed, his muscles coiled to spring onto those that dared touch what was his, only to be forced back down to the bed by unseen hands.

A malicious chuckle reached his ears before another shadow leaned over him. Cerulean eyes glared down at him with amusement and satisfaction. The hanyou snarled between clenched teeth and yanked at his arms with the power of all the rage boiling under his skin. He was beyond livid as he contemplated his next move. First, he would scratch that fucking smirk off of the blue-eyed motherfucker's face. Then, he would tear the remaining bastards' limbs for laying their filthy hands on her before ripping their miserable hearts out of their chests.

The only problem was that he couldn't make his captors move even an inch no matter how hard he tried. Kagome's cries echoed in his ears as he yanked and kicked, trashed and roared to no avail. It was when he dug his claws into the hands restraining his wrists that he noticed what was wrong. His sharp-as-steel claws had disappeared only to be replaced by useless, blunt nails he despised. "Fuck!" he hissed, feeling panic grip his chest. Twisting his head to one side, he caught sight of long, dark locks instead of his usual silver mane, confirming his fears. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

The insolent bastard snickered at the captive's futile attempts to break free. "Did you really think that we wouldn't find you here?" Ice blue eyes gleamed with mirth, and the intruder sneered. "Or, were you too busy fucking your little whore that you forgot about us?"

At the hateful words, a choked sob rose from Kagome followed by a pitiful whimper when she was knocked back to the wall with a thud. Inuyasha's jaw clenched shut, and he yanked harder on his restraints. "Bastard," he growled between gritted teeth. "Keep her out of this! She didn't do a fucking thing!"

"Ooh, the dog is touchy about his bitch," mocked the supposed leader of the aggressors in a sing-song voice. "How adorable." He flashed a fang-baring grin and turned his gaze to the frightened and confused girl. The hanyou's warning snarls and flustered curses were ignored as cold eyes took in her vulnerable, naked form, chilling the poor girl to the bone. "She's rather cute, I must admit," he mumbled distractedly.

The protests generously adorned with blush-worthy curses escalated in volume, bringing attention back to the captive. With a smirk, the leader offered, "Let's make a deal. You hand me the jewel, and I'll consider letting the girl live."

"Not until you let her go," shot back Inuyasha. He knew too well that if he gave them what they wanted, there would be nothing to keep him and Kagome alive. He had to keep her safe. He, at least, owed her this after all she had, albeit unknowingly, done for him. She was innocent and good and everything that was beautiful. He would, without a doubt, die of heartache if she came to harm because of his misdeeds.

"You're testing my patience, hanyou." The blue-eyed bastard's voice broke through his thoughts in a hiss. "I've already traveled half the galaxy because of you. Believe me when I say I lost my patience somewhere along the road." He leveled the captive with a glare and leaned down, ignoring the promises of death flashing in the half-demon's narrowed grey eyes. "Now, tell me where the jewel is," he demanded.

His answer came out mixed with hostile growls. "Let. Her. Go."

He raised an eyebrow at the hanyou's resilience and offhandedly remarked, "As you wish."

Movement from where Kagome was held caught his attention, and Inuyasha watched with his eyes wide open as Kagome's throat was slit in one smooth move by long claws. A gut wrenching, gurgled sound escaped her throat while her life's essence leaked down to her chest with alarming speed. His horrified gaze met her confused one before the sparkle that was purely Kagome slowly disappeared from her beautiful orbs, leaving a dull blue behind. Her delicate form went limp against the wall, and then, she was no more.

She was no more.

His mouth dropped open, but no sound escaped his throat. He wanted to scream. He wanted to curse those monsters to the ends of the universe. He wanted to plunge his claws into their chests and rip their worthless hearts out so that they would no longer beat. _Her_ heart would no longer beat. He wanted to tear out their throats so that they would no longer breathe. _She_ would no longer breathe.

She would no longer smile. He would no longer hear her laugh. The twinkle in her eyes was gone forever. He would never feel the warmth of her skin again. He would never be graced with her soft touch. Not. Ever. Again.

She was no more.

His eyes closed in denial. His heart refused to beat. His lungs refused to breathe. His chest tightened to the point of agony. He wanted out — out of his binds, out of this horrifying scene, out of a world where she didn't exist, out of his own miserable existence. The longer he fought against his captors, the stronger their hold on him became. Until, finally, he managed to fill his lungs with much needed air — air that was fresh, warm and not tainted with the suffocating stench of blood. Air filled with her sweet fragrance and the scent of their coupling…

_What the fuck?_

When he opened his eyes, there were no shadows glaring down at him. The metallic ceiling softly gleamed with the dim light emanating from the fixture embedded in the wall next to the door. There were no little, pink balls of light floating around. His gaze flew to the corner where her lifeless body had slumped only to be met by nothing but the plain, old wall. He exhaled in relief and pushed his damp bangs off of his forehead with his hands — his _free_ hands.

He smiled.

She hadn't been slaughtered in that corner. They hadn't been attacked. _A dream. It was a fucking dream!_ But then, why did his chest still feel heavy?

Looking down, he was met with the sight of long, dark locks sprawled upon his chest and her beautiful face relaxed in peaceful slumber. Her small hand lay on the sweaty skin over his heart. He couldn't stop himself as he gathered the delicate appendage with one hand and brought it to his lips for a grateful kiss as his other arm hugged her torso protectively. He nuzzled her neck, drinking in her scent greedily. He closed his eyes and let her slow but steady heartbeat calm his frazzled nerves.

However, try as he might, he couldn't shake the feeling of impending doom. Dread lingered in his heart, keeping him on edge. _But, why?_ What did he have to fear so much? If it came down to it, he could easily take out a handful of those bastards even with his bare claws. _Claws… no… no claws… black hair… helpless…_ His breath hitched in his throat, and his hand flew to his head. Reassured that his doglike ears were still intact, the hanyou let out the air in his lungs in a whoosh and cursed his ignorance. _Shit!_ He could feel the slight weakening of his aura already. _How the hell did I miss that before?!_ He balled his fists in agitation at his lack of attention. His body worked like a clock regardless of which part of the universe he was in, and he could always sense when his transformation was close. And, it _was_ close.

Gulping down his irritation, he decided to take the dream-turned-nightmare for what it was — a warning.

_Idiot! You shouldn't have let yourself get so fucking distracted. You're damn lucky that your subconscious thinks more than you do, you dick-head!_

He inwardly growled at the returning voice of reason in his head. _Where the hell have you been, asshole? On honeymoon?_ He shook his head to put a stop to his internal debate before it started. It was definitely not the best time to argue with himself.

It was time to leave.

Not daring to breathe, Inuyasha carefully untangled his limbs from the girl's. He tried his best to ignore the loss of her warmth and the softness of her skin. His ears drooped when Kagome whimpered in her sleep, but he didn't let it distract him. He couldn't _afford_ to let her distract him anymore. When he was sure that she settled back in a deep slumber, he pulled the covers up to her chin and looked around for his discarded clothes. His overalls lay forgotten at the foot of the bed, and he dove for them. About to pull them over his legs, he finally noticed the dampness that still clung to his skin and the rather unpleasant smell that accompanied it. He glanced at the peacefully sleeping girl before checking the time and deciding that he could at least afford a quick shower.

Gathering his clothes, Inuyasha tiptoed to the bathroom. As he stood under the hot water, his thoughts wandered once more to his dream. It had felt so real. Perhaps, it was due to the fact that the last two days hadn't been much different from the start of the dream — him and Kagome, alone in the small room. After the steamy confrontation in the bathroom the day before, she had asked Sango to let her take the day off, saying that she had a headache as an excuse. That day, they hadn't left the bed except for eating and using the bathroom. Yesterday, her imaginary headache had miraculously continued to bother her, and this time, they had left the bed… in favor of the shower…

…and the bathtub…

…and the table…

…and the wall…

He smirked as he replayed his favorite scenes in his mind's eye. He shook his head and stopped the descent of his hand down his abdomen at the last moment. He didn't have time for that. Instead, he proceeded to wash his hair. As he lathered his long, silver mane, he couldn't help but remember how her hair felt in his hands; it was softer than his, especially when it fell against his chest. _Like in the dream…_ An involuntary grin tugged at the corner of his lips. It hadn't taken her long to want to dominate him. Once she had gotten over her initial shyness and awkwardness, Inuyasha had been introduced to a curious and almost insatiable tigress. _I created a monster. _He chuckled as he imagined her wearing a piece of fur, showing off her little claws and hungrily licking her lips. _Tigress? Keh! Kitten is more like it. The girl can't hurt a fly._

Despite the circumstances, the last two days had been perhaps the best of his life. He had never felt so warm, so carefree, so _loved_ before. And all because of one tiny girl — a girl whose company he honestly enjoyed. That was why he had missed the signs. The warning he had received was not only about the impending danger his pursuers created, but also about _her_. Judging by the way he already felt around her, it wouldn't be long before he actually cared for her more than he cared for himself.

And _that_, without a doubt, was not acceptable.

He was a loner, an outlaw. He was wanted in at least fifty different planets. He wasn't ready to abandon his life, give up the excitement and settle down for a life in the shadows. He couldn't take care of anyone but himself. Just tagging along with him could easily be a death sentence even for someone who was capable of protecting themself. He didn't need that kind of responsibility, not even if it meant he could have her by his side. He scoffed at that thought. _I do _not_ want her by my side._ They had fun in the short amount of time they had together, which was actually the longest time the hanyou had spent in the company of a female without wanting to dig himself a hole in the farthest corner of the galaxy and never come out again. However, it wouldn't be long before he no longer found her enticing. Did he have the luxury of taking his shiny new toy with him only to waste his time looking for someplace to dump her when he lost his interest? _No._ The best place to dump her was in her room.

Besides, why would she want to stay with him? He might have this girl with him now, but he knew too well that it was just an illusion, that he didn't really _have_ her. She seemed to like him for whatever bizarre reason she had for the time being, but he wasn't naive enough to think that it wouldn't change when she learned the truth about him. No, he knew from experience that it would change in the blink of an eye. He had fooled her, used her and betrayed her trust from the very beginning. There was no doubt that even if he decided to come clean and tell her the truth, the result would be the same. And when she learned that he was not only an imposter, who took advantage of her, but also a thief, a criminal, she would be disgusted with him. She would regret ever letting him close, letting him touch her. _No._ Not even Kagome could be good enough to care for him if she knew the truth. The compassion in her beautiful eyes would morph into hurt at first, and then to something uglier — hate.

He shuddered.

He didn't need to see that. He needed to remember her as the way she was now — soft, warm, affectionate, and more importantly, _alive_.

It was that last thought that drove him to leave a note in the pocket of her uniform after he was dressed and ready to go. She would find it when she got dressed for the day and she would be prepared when those bastards came looking for him. Even if she gave it to the authorities, he was going to be far out of their reach by then. Without him there, she would at least have a chance to explain why her room stunk of the notorious fugitive.

Of course, admitting to the possession of a supposed S-android would get her into trouble, but that was better than intentionally harboring a fugitive. She should have known better and should not have accepted her mistress' gift in the first place. Besides, he doubted that the senator would let it be known that his home was invaded by illegal S-androids or that the esteemed politician's daughter, let alone his maid, associated with smugglers.

He put her uniform away and grabbed a hooded cloak out of the closet. He checked his pocket to see that he had his necklace and the jewel. He was ready. Standing next to the bed, he spared a few seconds to watch the girl. _Only to make sure she's asleep,_ he reasoned with himself. She lay on her back, deep in slumber. Her dark hair haloed around her head. Her expression was relaxed, peaceful. White sheets tangled around her body, hiding her from his gaze. Her arms lay limply on her sides, one of them angled toward his pillow as if reaching for him. His eyes followed the delicate appendages adorned with milky skin to the hallows of her collarbones. He lingered a little longer on the slopes of her slender neck before settling on her mouth. Her lips — still rosy from his kisses from last night — invited him. He closed his eyes against temptation. His time was up.

Whirling around on his heels, he stomped to the door almost angrily. His hand hovered above the panel as his fist clenched and unclenched nervously.

_Dammit!_ He turned around and looked at her sleeping form hesitantly. "Just for luck," he murmured as he stalked toward her. Leaning down, he pressed his lips to hers gently. They were soft like petals but firm like an apple against his starving mouth. Even in her sleep, her lips parted and she kissed him back, warming him like the sun but making him shiver at the same time. Her kiss was sweet like honey, but still, it left a bitter taste in his mouth. _Fuck, I'm gonna miss this._ Her fingers wound themselves into his mane, and he moaned at the feel of her soft tongue gliding against his. He came back to his senses when he felt her fingers inch closer to his ear and caught them before it was too late. Severing his lips from hers, he looked down at her. Her eyes peeked between her lashes, and she smiled at him lazily before falling back to sleep.

Careful not to touch her again lest he roused her for good, he let his nose hover over her neck and filled his lungs with her sweet aroma. That would have to last for a long while. _A very long while… like forever…_

_Goodbye, mistress._

He turned around for the last time and sneaked out the door. As it closed behind him silently, he headed down the empty corridor. On his way down to the kitchen where he knew he would have access to the underground tunnels, he dived into a public restroom where the scent of dozens who visited the place daily would linger. Once inside, he slipped on his necklace, effectively concealing his scent and aura as well as his looks. He couldn't afford to let his scent be caught when they came after him. Thanks to his necklace, his altered scent would throw them off his trail.

He put on the cloak he had stolen and hid his face under its hood. He never used his concealment charm carelessly. It was his last resort to survive. And because of that, he couldn't let his face be seen by anyone. If not immediately, they would soon find out how he escaped in the surveillance records. It was the exact same reason why he wasn't using one of the many exits leading out of this building. His face would be seen by someone for sure, and they would make the connection and before he knew it, everyone in the galaxy who was after him would know his likeness. He couldn't afford that.

It wasn't long before he found the kitchen. He stood before one of the garbage disposal units — his safest escape to the outside world — with a sickened expression on his face. After a few seconds, he sighed in resignation. _Here I go. _He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath and held it as he jumped down the narrow opening in the wall that would lead him to the ducts under the building.

_Fuck! This place is disgusting!

* * *

_

A loud growl resonated in the small forest surrounding the Tajiya residence, scaring a flock of birds off to the air. At the edge of the woods, under the shadow of a large tree stood a cloaked figure, his dark form perfectly still despite the turmoil he had just caused.

"Where did you disappear to?" snarled Sesshoumaru as he gritted his teeth in frustration. Closing his eyes, he stretched his aura once more only to retreat it back when he came up with nothing. "That stupid half-breed," he hissed. His eyes narrowed to slits, searching for an opening that would provide him access to the building just like he had been doing for the last two days.

Two days.

That was how long he had been lurking in these woods. The building was impenetrable. He didn't know how the hanyou managed to get in there, but he couldn't have found a better place to hide. _Or worse._ Not for the first time since he had found himself in the vicinity of the politician's home, Sesshoumaru wondered how the idiot was going to escape this castle.

The absence of the half-demon's aura was unsettling. The dog demon had been checking it almost every hour since he had arrived at this place to make sure that the fugitive did not escape without his notice. And then, suddenly, it had disappeared as if the hanyou himself had dissolved into thin air. _Unless he has something to conceal himself with..._ If that was the case, which probably was if his memory served him right, he would have to make sure that his prey did not walk away without him noticing. It would be next to impossible to catch the new trail, and that would be extremely unpleasant after having crossed half the galaxy with the sole purpose of capturing the notorious thief.

Not expecting to find anything but still needing to check, he stretched his aura once more. _Nothing._ Getting bolder now that no demonic presence threatened his secrecy, he unleashed more of his power but kept his perimeter tight around the building, washing it with waves of his invisible but intense demonic energy. He froze when he felt something. It was weak, but the presence was undeniable as it caressed against his nearly overwhelming aura. He withdrew his power immediately. The connection had been brief enough that unless the presence had been looking for him, his probing would have gone unnoticed.

Was the hanyou still in there? It had to be the hanyou; it was the same type of energy: a dog demon. If so, how had he managed to withdraw his aura enough to leave only a wisp of it out there? In the hanyou's case, that was impossible even with the proper training.

One could not bottle up that much power without blowing up the bottle.

_He _is_ using a concealment spell. There's no other explanation._ Sesshoumaru let loose another frustrated growl. This made things harder than it already was. With neither an aura nor a scent to follow, all the demon could do was to wait for the time being. He couldn't help but wonder, though. _Why doesn't the spell hide his aura completely?

* * *

_

Kagome woke up to the buzzing sound of her alarm, feeling rejuvenated after a long night's sleep. The last two days had been tiresome with constant physical activities some of which she hadn't even known were possible, and early last night, her body had finally reminded her that she needed proper rest. Sighing blissfully, she pushed her bangs off of her face. "I'm up, I'm up," she murmured to no one, effectively putting a stop to the insistent wake-up call of the alarm.

She sat up slowly, letting the sheet down to pool in her lap. Raising her arms up over her head, she stretched like a cat. She moaned softly as she felt the muscles on her back protest. Goosebumps appeared on her exposed skin as a shiver ran up her spine. The girl turned to her side with a beaming smile, fully expecting to see her precious S-android. Instead, she was met with rumpled sheets in his place. A frown tugged at the corners of her mouth. She hadn't been alone in this bed in the last fifty hours or so.

A glance at the corner Yash used to sit followed by a quick scan of the rest of the room proved the S-android's absence. _If he's not here, then where…?_ Her question sounded redundant, even in her head, the moment her eyes landed upon the closed bathroom door. Remembering the last time she had woken up like this and what had happened after she had found him in the shower, she smiled even as she blushed slightly. Rolling her eyes at the wanton creature she had discovered within herself during the last two days, the young maid stood up and skipped to the bathroom, where she was sure to find her beloved S-android.

Approximately ten seconds later, she returned to the bedroom. Her cheerful smile was replaced by a confused scowl. _He is not in there._ Questions bombarded her mind as panic gripped at her chest. _Did he wander outside? What if someone saw him and found out what he is? But why would he leave the room?! Did someone come into the room while I was asleep and take him away? Oh, please, don't let that be the case._

She threw on her uniform hurriedly. Praying that wherever he was, he was still in one piece, she flew out the door in search of Yash. She knew that her chances were slim, though, and that was what upset her the most. S-androids were illegal. If he was discovered, he would be destroyed. A choked sob escaped her throat at the thought of her handsome companion, broken and abandoned in a landfill.

_Please, Yash. Be safe.

* * *

_

Sango had spent the whole morning preparing the guest list for the upcoming union ball. Having lost her mother at a young age, she had shouldered the responsibilities of a senator's wife for her father's sake. She wasn't complaining, for she loved taking care of her family. More importantly, she was loyal to her father; he was the only man she knew she could trust. However, she couldn't help but feel like a caged bird at times — especially times like this. She longed for freedom, she wanted to be her own master and for once, to not care about what others would think about what she wore, what she said, what she did, and even what she ate. _God forbid word gets out about my secret stash of S-androids._ That would not be pleasant because no matter what she wanted, she was chained by her status. And for the last few days, her prison had alternated between her room, where she had used for planning, and the ball room, where she had seen to the preparations. She couldn't even find an opportunity to check in on Kagome, knowing the girl was sick for the first time in years.

The door slid open, and Sango looked up to see Kagome leaning against the wall, her hands clutching her knees for support as she struggled to regain her breath. The young woman smiled at her maid. "You must feel well if you're already up and running around," she commented.

"Sango," rasped the girl in between gasps.

Upon a careful look, Sango could see the tears rolling down Kagome's cheeks and the way she trembled like a leaf. "Kagome? What happened?" She stood up from her desk to help the girl stand.

"It's Yash," whispered the maid as she let her friend lead her further into the room. "He's gone."

"What do you mean 'he's gone'?" asked Sango, confused.

"He was not in my room!" Kagome's voice rose with the level of her panic as she explained her problem. "I checked everywhere I could! He's nowhere to be found!"

Sango scowled at the news, her brown eyes contemplative. "Okay. Don't worry; we'll find him. But, you should calm down first."

"I can't, Sango! What if he left the room and someone noticed?!"

"I would've heard of it," she reassured confidently. She would have heard of it and would already be in her father's office, squirming under his piercing gaze and trying her damnedest to explain herself _if_ a S-android had been seen wandering around. It wouldn't be pleasant, but that was expected. It was the 'wandering around' part that didn't make sense to Sango. "I don't understand. Why would it leave the room if you haven't ordered it to do so? S-androids do not do anything without a command, Kagome."

The girl looked sheepish as she answered. "Well, I never had to command him to do anything."

"What?"

Mistaking Sango's disbelief as incomprehension, Kagome elaborated, "He would just hang around and do anything he wished unless I commanded him not to."

"What?!" asked Sango again, her voice shrill in her surprise.

"Stop saying that! What is wrong?"

Regaining her composure, the older woman tried to give her friend a small smile. "No-nothing," she stuttered, choosing not to dwell on the topic in the face of the girl's anxiety but filing it to be pondered upon later. "I've just never seen a robot act like that is all." Her voice turned into a whisper as she watched her maid frantically pace back and forth, already lost in her thoughts.

"What if they took him away?!" cried out Kagome hysterically. Her pacing stopped, which let her mistress notice how badly she was shaking. "Oh, God! He might be torn into pieces by now!"

"Calm down, Kagome," soothed Sango. She took Kagome's hands in a gesture of comfort, even though it seemed to go unnoticed. The girl was so frightened about the safety of her S-android that Sango didn't have the heart to remind her of the troubles they would find themselves in if the robot was indeed discovered. Besides, the senator's daughter didn't think her maid cared about that at the moment.

"Kagome?" called Sango when Kagome's skin turned deathly pale, but the young girl was no longer hearing her. Her chest heaved as she gasped for breath, and her hands shook uncontrollably despite Sango's grasp on them. She swayed on her feet, and her eyes rolled back before her whole weight fell into the older woman's arms as she fainted.

"Dear God!" rasped Sango, trying to hold onto Kagome without losing her balance. She gingerly lowered her friend to lie on the floor and hurried to call for help.

Fifteen minutes later, Kagome was transported to the ward. She lay silently as the doctor did a quick scan of her small body. He passed a five inch metallic cylinder over her form from head to toe. The gadget bathed every inch in its path with a soft blue light as it glided down slowly. Smiling at the anxious girl reassuringly, he turned to check out the results on a three dimensional hologram of Kagome's insides.

Sango stood by the bed, holding the patient's hand in a gesture of comfort. She sighed tiredly as she affectionately patted the girl's head. Kagome squeezed her hand, and Sango tightened her hold in response to reassure the distraught maid. The senator's daughter had checked in with the security after the girl was safely in the hospital ward and had been surprised to learn that no robot had been found wandering around neither had anyone been seen that fit the S-android's description.

She was still baffled about the fact that her present to her friend was able to act on its own accord and without a given order. Normally, it wasn't supposed to stay activated when it wasn't given a task. It was no wonder the maid had been referring to the robot as if it were alive. From what little information she had gathered from Kagome, her S-android did act like a living creature with free will.

But then again, Miroku had made it clear that this S-android was a product of the latest technology. _Miroku._ Sango frowned at the thought of the merchandiser. She had been his customer for a few years now and had trusted him to keep his end of the deal. He had proven dependable over the years with not only the quality of the robots he had provided her with, but also by keeping his mouth shut about her illegitimate tastes. It seemed to Sango that this time, the merchandiser had foisted a faulty product on her. _Apparently, a visit to our favorite smuggler is in order._

Her attention shifted back to the task at hand when the doctor spoke. "Young lady must have had a stressful morning because from what I've gathered, she's perfectly healthy."

"Are you sure, doctor?" she asked, wanting to make sure nothing was wrong with her friend.

"Absolutely," the doctor replied, smiling. Sango turned her gaze to Kagome and started to tell her that everything would be all right when the doctor added, "Both the lady and the baby are perfectly fine."

Sango's head shot up in surprise. "Ex-excuse me? Baby?"

He glanced at her, a little surprised, as he replied with certainty, "Yes."

"But, she can't be pregnant, doc," argued the senator's daughter hotly. "Check it again, please."

The doctor seemed a little offended at her words. "Ms. Tajiya, I assure you my results are one hundred percent correct. This young lady is… let's see… two days pregnant." The doctor glanced at Sango, and seeing the disbelief written on her face, he added, "Would you like to see? It's not much, only a handful of cells at the moment, but it'll soon resemble…" He was cut short by the woman's outburst.

"But-but, that's impossible! She hasn't even had sex! How can she…" Her objections died in her throat with one glance at Kagome, and she knew. The girl had been silent as a grave and still as a stone since the beginning of the argument. But, from the way her hand rested over her belly and the way her lips trembled and her eyes glistened with tears, Sango knew that her argument was pointless.

Kagome was pregnant.

Sango also knew with whom the maid could have had sex in the last two days. Anger rose within her, manifesting itself in the reddening of her cheeks and the tightening of her fists.

_That… _thing_… was not an S-android!_

**End of Chapter 7

* * *

**

**End Notes:**

*Before anyone asks, let me tell you that Inuyasha's transformation has nothing to do with the cycle of the Earth's moon.

*If anyone wonders how the doc can detect Kagome's pregnancy so easily at such an early stage and with such precision, please keep in mind that this story is a sci-fi.


	8. Irrevocably Altered

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga, nor do I make any money by writing this story. However, the S-android belongs to me.

**Author's note:** I'd like to thank my dear friends Eggry and Ai Kisugi for helping me come up with ideas for this story. They are not in this chapter yet, but I'll give the due credits when the time comes. I don't know when I'll be able to update again, but I'm working on it. Now, let the adventure begin!

_

* * *

Spec__ial thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree.

* * *

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**Chapter 8: Irrevocably Altered**

Deep into the forest behind the Tajiya mansion stood an elegant glass building, housing countless precious plants gathered from all across the galaxy. Inside the building, the steel door that sealed the underground passage to the mansion slid open to reveal a young girl wearing the light blue uniform of a housemaid. The long raven tresses that framed her lovely face were a tangled mess; her skin was drained of color due to distress; and her sapphire orbs shone with unshed tears.

Once the door closed behind her, Kagome took in a deep breath and started walking briskly toward the front exit. As she passed, a tall plant with yellow leaves — one of her grandfather's favorites — followed her movement. The gorgeous flower leaned toward her, and its color turned to a shimmering orange, seeking her affection. However, Kagome's eyes were glued to her destination outside the greenhouse as she made her way among the rainbow of colors.

Her erratic heart drove the girl crazy; it threatened to burst through its cage one second and dropped to her stomach in the next. The restlessness Kagome felt had been mirrored in Sango's actions as the senator's normally demure, courteous daughter cursed incessantly and demanded that they leave immediately to go after the person who started this mess. The young maid did not want to disappoint her mistress; she had already done that with her stupidity, which left her in a shameful situation. However, she didn't know if Sango's plan was the best course of action or if she should take any action at all. Luckily, Sango had been gracious enough to give Kagome the time she needed to compose herself, and the young maid was grateful for that. She had never been so confused…

…and humiliated.

…and heartbroken.

Outside the greenhouse, she took the short path to the one place that could give her peace from the chaos that was her mind. Even before she saw it, she could feel its soothing presence. Her late grandfather had always told that it was a piece of their home and that was what Kagome felt once the overgrown bushes parted before her.

The tree.

She sighed in relief and let her feet carry her to the magnificent plant towering above everything else in the forest. Its sheer size was enough to make the girl feel safe, but she could always sense that there was more to it than mere wood and leaves. She often regretted not having had the chance to ask her grandfather about it, but that wasn't why she was here today. Unfortunately today, she had bigger regrets.

Kagome looked down from the web of branches hovering over her head to the little white stone lying at the base of the tree. Large roots arched around the stone as if to protect it in a hug. She stopped a couple feet away. Her gaze followed the intricate symbols of an unknown language her grandfather requested to be engraved on the stone.

"Grandpa," the girl whispered, and hearing her voice quiver with anguish was enough to finally crack the young girl's brave façade. With a broken sob, she fell to her knees and let the tears she had kept at bay for the last couple of hours escape their prison.

"I'm sorry," she cried as she bowed her head in shame and fisted her hands over the soil covering her grandfather's remains. "I've been such a fool." Warm droplets fell down her chin and wetted the ground between her hands while sobs raked her small frame. "You told me that I'd know in my heart when I met the right person, but I…" Sniffling, Kagome bit her lip like a child embarrassed by her mistake and dreading to be scolded by her confession. "I _forgot_."

As if she heard the old man's reproach, the girl shook her head in defense and hurried to explain. "I don't know what came over me. He…" Her voice trailed off as pain stabbed at her heart at the mere thought of _him_. Releasing a choked sob, she forced herself to continue. "His very presence made me forget everything, Grandpa. I had no control around him. It was almost like a force was pulling me to him, and I wasn't strong enough to resist. And now, the same force is compelling me to go after him." She looked up at the leaves dancing over her head and chuckled darkly at her idiocy for still thinking that there was something special about him, something binding him to her beyond the convenience of her naivety.

She closed her eyes and let two more tears drop from her eyelashes. Sighing tiredly, she looked down at the grave. "Sango thinks that I should go, that we should find him and make him pay for his deception, but I don't know. He fooled me, used me and then left without a word. What can I do with that? What can I say or do if I find him?"

"Besides, it's not only about me anymore," she mumbled as she put her palms over her womb reverently, almost fearfully. "You taught me to cherish life and protect the innocent, and I will. I can't condemn a pure soul for the sins of its father. No matter who or what _he_ is, I will love and protect my baby."

Kagome gasped at the ease her final words left her lips, and she repeated them, savoring the warmth of hope that blossomed in her heart for the first time that day."My baby."

A watery smile tugged at her lips and tears of happiness rolled down her cheeks this time. "I'm gonna have a baby, Grandpa. I'll be a mother. I wish you could see me now." Her smile froze when she considered what her grandfather would have witnessed if he had been alive, and her voice took on a somber tone again. "But, I'm also glad that you won't. I've been a disgrace to you. I lusted after a man whom I didn't even know was a man and I gave myself to him willingly."

How ironic it was that Kagome had wanted him to be real when she had thought he was a robot and now that she knew he was real, she didn't know what to do with that fact.

"I… I cared about him, but he…" The girl didn't even know who _he_ was, but he clearly didn't feel the same about her since he had left without a single goodbye. Had he been doing this all the time — playing the S-android and sneaking his way into young women's beds? Had he been laughing at her naivety while he had his fun with the unsuspecting, stupid, little maid? If that was the case, she had certainly not made his job difficult. But still, he had left. Perhaps, she wasn't any fun to be with, after all. At that thought, the knife in Kagome's heart twisted.

She willed the pain away, but it was for naught. She couldn't go back to being that carefree, happy person she used to be; she wasn't that girl anymore. Nothing was going to be the same from now on. One hand clutched the cloth over her aching heart and the other rested on her belly. She whispered, "He altered me irrevocably."

_And, he obviously didn't even care._

"Oh, God," whimpered the young maid as she stuck her suddenly cold hands into her pockets for warmth. "This is so humiliating. I wish I could…" She stopped abruptly when her fingers closed around a smooth object that certainly was not the fabric of her uniform. She took it out only to see that it was a folded piece of paper. Her brows furrowed in curiosity, and she unfolded it with trepidation. She was met with a carelessly scribbled note.

_Little Mistress,_

_Thank you for your hospitality; I really had a good time but I must take my leave now. In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm not a robot. It doesn't matter who I am because you will not see me again. If people come asking about me, tell them the truth: that I deceived you and played with you until I got bored. It would be in your best interest to not try to find me and forget about what happened because, as you can see now, there's nothing for you to find but a selfish bastard who doesn't give a shit about anyone else._

_I'll repeat in case it didn't register in your little brain: Don't come looking for me._

_~Yash_

Kagome's eyes widened a little more with each word she read, and by the time she read his name, her face was bright red in anger. "That… that… jerk!" she sputtered.

He openly admitted that he had been playing with her. He even said that he had gotten 'bored.' It broke her heart, but more so, it doubled her anger. Every word he used was offensive in her mind. He used to call her 'Mistress' at times even after she had told him not to. Had he been laughing at her when he had done that? Now, as if to mock her status and to rub it in her face, he was calling her 'Little Mistress.' On top of that, he told her not to go after him as if he was sure that she would follow him like an obedient puppy. _What a prick!_

That settled it. She could be an insignificant maid, but _he_ wasn't going to be ordering her around. With her mind set, she read the note once more to strengthen her resolve — or simply because she couldn't stop looking at his handwriting. She shook her head stubbornly to dispel that last thought before her eyes landed on the part of the note she had dismissed the first time.

_P.S. Keep Miroku out of this if you can. He didn't mean you any harm. But if you must involve him, well like I said, I don't give a shit. The lecher can take care of himself._

Recognizing the name immediately, the girl's eyes narrowed into slits. _Miroku._ Sango had been right; the merchant had known the truth all along. Folding the paper, she put it back in her pocket and straightened her shoulders in determination. "I have to go, Grandpa," she said with a voice hardened with conviction. "Goodbye."

She turned on her heels and hurried down the path that led away from the greenhouse. Every step she took from the one place that had ever felt like home left her unsettled, but she had to do this. Though, she still was not sure what she was going to do if she ever saw him again…

… apart from slapping the smug look she could imagine him wearing off of his handsome face.

* * *

Thin lines of light flickered to life on the corners of the dirty ceiling, illuminating the large storeroom filled with lines of brand new robots. The droids stood lifeless like statues made of metal and plastic. Several pairs of eyes blankly stared ahead without blinking as soft footsteps announced the entrance of the young merchant.

Miroku made his way to the back of the room, carrying a box of microchips in his arms. He placed his precious cargo on the top shelf next to a stack of droid eyes in brilliant blues, vibrant greens and earthly browns. He carefully adjusted the leather glove on his right hand that had slipped slightly and almost lost his footing when he stepped on a female arm piece protruding from the bottom shelf. Cursing under his breath, he crouched down to tuck the appendage safely away before he stood up to appraise his goods.

His once large collection was now reduced to an unimpressive group of housemaids, nannies and robots designed for other trivial tasks. _How boring._ The lack of his various S-androids was saddening, but it was also necessary. After the unexpected visit from Inuyasha and the following search for the hanyou, the merchant had been on edge. He had been lucky that when the soldiers had come, they had been looking for someone alive. Otherwise, even the brilliant cover he had used to hide the nature of his robots could not have saved the young man from lots of trouble with the government. He knew it was a matter of time before they came back looking for more information.

The soft beep coming from his wrist alerted Miroku to an incoming call. When he didn't recognize the caller ID, he hurried out of the storeroom to take the call. Once he answered, the 3D image of a tall, young man appeared in the middle of his living room. He was dressed in an expensive business suit. His long, black hair was tied at his neck, and a pair of dark glasses covered his eyes. He looked handsome… and _rich_.

Miroku grinned wolfishly and wiped his hands together in anticipation. "Hello, sir," he greeted sweetly. "How may I help you?"

"Hey, Monk," said the caller gruffly.

Hearing the nickname his longtime partner-in-crime had so graciously given him in a slightly softer version of the hanyou's voice wiped the grin off of Miroku's face. He took the image in more carefully before a genuine smile broke out on his face. "Well, well. My dear puppy-faced friend, is that you?"

Inuyasha didn't seem to be entertained when Miroku reciprocated in the same manner and used the hated pet name. A low growl reverberated in his chest before he noticed what he was doing and stopped as he looked around nervously. "Cut the shit. I'm out of here. Thought you'd like to know."

"Where are you headed?" asked the merchant in concern. His friend was wanted on many planets; he couldn't just travel around and expect to not get into trouble.

The hanyou looked back over his shoulder as he mumbled distractedly, "Can't tell you that."

Furrowing his brows, Miroku tried again, "How are you traveling?"

The disguised fugitive shook his head slightly. "Can't tell that, either."

"Fuck," cursed the merchant in irritation. "What _can_ you tell me then?"

"Listen," started Inuyasha as he lowered his voice. "I have a meeting with someone who's supposed to help me get rid of this fucking ball and hand me the rest of my payment. They'll probably get off my tail once I no longer have the damn thing."

Miroku nodded in understanding. His friend was right. It didn't make sense that they followed the hanyou across the galaxy just to get a measly thief no matter how notorious the thief was. They wanted the jewel back. "When?" he asked, trying to get as much information as possible.

"In a week," replied Inuyasha shortly.

Pleased that for once he got an answer, Miroku pushed his luck. "Where?"

"Told you," growled the fugitive as he ducked his head as if to avoid being seen by the passersby. "Can't tell you that."

"Of all the…" started Miroku before he clenched his teeth. He pinched the bridge of his nose against the headache that threatened to break out any moment. "Look. It's been crazy around here. I'm worried about you. Will you at least let me know how it went?"

"Will do that." The hanyou once again checked his surroundings nervously. "Gotta go now," he mumbled before he cut the connection.

Miroku stood frozen as the image of his friend disappeared from his living room. Inuyasha was leaving. That meant the pseudo-S-android he had sold to Sango had left the senator's house a few hours ago. His absence had to be noticed by now, which meant the merchant was certain to be visited by the object of his affections shortly. How could one explain the abrupt disappearance of a robot to a woman as intelligent as Sango?

The young man groaned in misery. "I'm so fucked."

* * *

The Tokyo Spaceport was a cylindrical tower with many levels. Most levels had several circular docks connected to the tower with bridges that were covered with a semi-sphere of glass. The lower levels resembled a bee hive with countless shuttles landing on and taking off from the docks every minute. On the higher levels, monstrous ships used for long trips through the galaxy hovered in the air, while the loading and unloading of passengers continued via bridges that extended from the tower on demand.

Among the throng of passengers that crowded the third floor, a beautiful young woman with strawberry blond hair struggled to make her way to her flight. The white, elegant dress she wore was a sign of her high social status, and the flirtatious smile she cast on any good-looking passerby gave away her desire for company.

She was the perfect cover.

With a well-timed step into her path, the blond crashed right into a hard chest and dropped her carry-on luggage in her surprise. When she looked up, her green eyes widened at the sight of the handsome businessman before they shone in excitement.

Inuyasha hid the knowing smirk that threatened to break out on his face and flashed the woman a charming smile instead. "Allow me to help you with that," he said in his most disarming voice and picked up her suitcase.

The blonde's gaze ghosted over the impeccable suit that complemented his tall frame, his long, dark hair that was neatly tied at the nape of his neck, his cleanly shaved jaw, and his smirking lips before it settled on his violet eyes. "Thank you," she purred and eagerly took the arm he offered.

Inuyasha was the epitome of a gentleman as he escorted her to her flight, making small talk on the way and playing the role of a protector when the crowd became too much. When he learned that she was traveling to the spaceport on Mars to visit her father, the admiral of the fleet that was based on the planet, he faked surprise and claimed that he was headed for the same flight.

It was a lie.

The businessman he had cornered in the restroom and knocked out with a simple move had a ticket for one of those huge ships. It would have been easy to hop on that ship and travel far into the galaxy, but it would have also been riskier. They would find his trail in no time once the man whose clothes and identity the hanyou had stolen awoke. To throw his followers off, Inuyasha actually checked into the ship before he sneaked out and joined the crowd to take one of the short-distance flights. If they tracked him through the ticket, they were going to be looking for him in the wrong place.

He had noticed the security guards paying close attention to the lonely male passengers; they were still looking for the fugitive. His destination was far away, but the hanyou was planning to make more than one stop before he got there. If they still came after him, he wasn't going to make their job easy. Besides, he had enough time before he had to meet Naraku's man for his payment.

Once they reached the ride to Mars, a male officer was checking the IDs of the passengers before they paid for their tickets and loaded the ship. It didn't require an ID to travel in the solar system, but apparently, the notorious fugitive's arrival had changed that. That didn't sit well with Inuyasha's plans. If he showed them the only identification he could provide, they would know where he was headed when the man he had taken it from alerted security. He would be arrested the moment he stepped foot on Mars.

While Inuyasha pondered his chances, they arrived at the cashier. The officer rather blatantly checked the blonde on the hanyou's arm out as he demanded to see their IDs. Ignoring the woman's agitated huff, Inuyasha reluctantly stretched his arm to have the chip on the bracelet he had stolen read by the tiny metal tool standing on the counter. Before he could do so, his lady friend flashed her military pass, causing the color to drain from the officer's face. Mortified by having offended someone that could have him expelled to the darkest corner of the galaxy, the man let the couple pass without further questions.

They didn't even have to pay for their tickets.

Snickering, Inuyasha thanked the return of his luck as he escorted the young woman to an empty seat and took his place next to her. She prattled on about the rudeness of the men she had encountered lately, how difficult it was to meet gentlemen like him nowadays and how much she would like to introduce him to her father after they landed. The hanyou listened half-heartedly; his eyes were glued to the scene outside his window.

Once the ship took off, he watched the Tokyo Spaceport reduce to a dot in the distance. His ears twitched, hearing the girl sitting next to him munch on her snack. "These are delicious!" she exclaimed. "Want one?"

He looked at the blonde with green eyes, but what his eyes saw were gorgeous raven hair flowing down in large curls and brilliant sapphire orbs gazing at him in adoration.

"_Hmm," moaned Kagome as she bit into the strawberry in her hand. "Delicious." Licking her lips, she fed the remaining half of it to his awaiting mouth. "You like it?" she asked a little breathlessly while he sucked on the juice coating her finger._

_Inuyasha chewed slowly to regain his composure so that his voice wouldn't crack. "I wouldn't know," he said finally. "I'm a robot, remember?"_

_Her smile dimmed considerably at his reminder. "Oh, of course," she mumbled as she fiddled with the sheet covering her otherwise naked form. "I forgot again. You can't taste… and you probably don't feel other things as well. Silly of me." She gave him a fake grin before she abruptly stood up. "I better take a shower and head to work."_

_Watching Kagome walk away from the bed and away from him, Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably. He knew why she was so down all of a sudden. He was well aware that the stupid girl fantasized about him as a real person and he didn't like it. Surely, he was enjoying her attention, but she was getting attached and it would only break her heart in the end. But, what was worse for her? Believing that he was a robot only to find out that she had been fooled when he was gone for good, or considering him as real and getting attached only to be abandoned in the end?_

_It seemed that no matter what, she was going to be heartbroken. At least, he didn't have to witness it before it was unavoidable. Right?_

Oh, fuck it!

_With a snap decision, Inuyasha jumped out of the bed. Before she reached the bathroom door, he whirled the girl around with his hold on her arm and trapped her against the wall._

"_What," she started to ask but was silenced by his lips on hers._

_Always soft and warm, she instantly melted against him, greeting him with the skip in her heartbeat. He liked it a little too much for his sanity and pulled away slightly before he forgot why he was kissing her. "Who cares about food?" he mumbled, smiling when she helplessly leaned up to reestablish the connection of their lips. "Now this…" He licked her upper lip playfully, savoring the taste of strawberries and the unique flavor that only she emitted. "…tastes absolutely delicious."_

_With a delighted giggle, Kagome wrapped her arms around his neck and attacked his mouth greedily._

_It was all consuming: The way her lips molded to his so perfectly; the smoldering look she gave him from between her half-closed eyelids; the way the flush on her skin ignited a fire on his own…_

_She never made it to work that day._

Inuyasha blinked in surprise when the blonde's voice broke through the fog of his memories.

"I hate these trips," the woman whined. "They are always boring." She bit her lip with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes before she asked suggestively, "Do you want to do something to pass the time?"

Disoriented, the hanyou shook his head to clear his mind. Ignoring the pout that formed on his companion's full lips when she thought she was rejected, he turned his gaze to the small window.

How long was it going to be like this? Why did every single thing remind him of _her_?

Inuyasha scratched his head agitatedly while he watched the Earth shrink fast as the ship traveled farther into space. He groaned once his fingers encountered the scar Kagome had given him on his currently invisible ear — yet another reminder of her. He had noticed that it had taken a silver color lately. Not for the first time, he wondered if it would completely heal like every other injury he had had or if it would stay permanently.

He was absentmindedly stroking the scar with his fingertips when a wave of sorrow hit him hard — a feeling that was familiar but also alien in the sense that it didn't belong to him. He immediately released his ear as if it had burned his hand.

_What the fuck was that?_

The hanyou scoffed as his feelings took on a more somber tone in response; he didn't like feeling like this. It was entirely his fault. He had been cooped up in that room for too long and he had let himself become lost in the illusion of being with _her_. But, the fact was that none of it had been real. No matter how much Inuyasha enjoyed the time he had spent with Kagome, she hadn't been with _him_. She didn't even know him, and that was probably for the best; she would have wanted nothing to do with him if she had known the truth.

In the end, it had been nothing more than an illusion. It wasn't like he wanted it to be more than that, anyway. He was free at last and he would be damned if he let his mind be trapped in that little room. He couldn't help it if the fucking scar stayed on his ear forever, but he refused to be altered in any other way.

He had fought for too long to be free of his chains; he wasn't going to let anyone enslave him again, even if it wasn't by force.

"Goodbye, Little Mistress," whispered Inuyasha as the planet became an insignificant dot in the distance before he turned his attention to the woman beside him. "Well," he started as he pointedly checked her out. _What did she say her name was? Lily? Lola? Lulu? Oh, hell. Who cares? _He smirked when his ears caught the increase in her heartbeat. "What did you have in mind?"

* * *

Sesshoumaru had been lurking in the shadows of the trees that surrounded the senator's house. All his senses were tuned to his target to catch something — anything — that could give him a clue as to the whereabouts of the hanyou. After hours of waiting, the wind changed direction, carrying a scent that made Sesshoumaru spring into action and leave his post overlooking the main entrance of the Tajiya mansion.

Following his nose, he passed by a large greenhouse and flew down an old path partially covered by bushes only to stop dead in front of a magnificent tree. The scent trail ended there and was the most intense around the little white stone lying at the base of the tree. When his gaze landed on the symbols carved on the stone, the dog demon's eyes widened in surprise. Crouching on one knee, he traced the intricate patterns with one clawed finger.

'_Love will persevere.'_

Sesshoumaru knew that saying well. How could he not? It had been his father's mantra. Inutaisho had been a fierce leader and Sesshoumaru's hero until the day he had met Izayoi. A single glance was all it had taken to turn the great dog demon into a lovesick puppy. In one day, he had started talking about peace and unity and how all their problems could be solved by love and kindness.

Inutaisho had been a fool, and the love he had put on a pedestal had brought about his end.

Sesshoumaru scowled at the disrespect in his mind's voice. Regardless of his mistakes, Inutaisho had been a good father and an honorable king. As a son, it was Sesshoumaru's job to avenge his death and to clean up his name.

Letting his eyes follow the path his finger had taken, the dog demon read the next symbols aloud, "Higurashi Genma." Recognition lit his golden gaze, and he muttered almost inaudibly, "Well, I'll be damned."

The old man hadn't died back then, after all. He had survived the fall, so had his granddaughter, which explained the scent Sesshoumaru had been sniffing around. It all made sense now. They all had survived. But, how? Why hadn't he known? How come he hadn't realized it before?

Releasing a frustrated breath, Sesshoumaru stood up and punched the tree's bark. Pieces of wood splattered around him, but the tree stood intact. Tingles ran up his arm from where it connected with the tree; however, it wasn't due to the force of his strike. Intrigued, he placed his palm on the large trunk. He could feel the telltale remnants of ancient magic coursing through its core; it was not enough to make a difference, but it was still there. There was no doubt as to the source of that power.

"Goshinboku," he reverently whispered the sacred name of the God tree, the tangible manifestation of magic in his world. He could vaguely recall a time when his father had tried to reanimate the God tree on other planets in hopes of recreating the magic that had been slowly diminishing for years. This tree was a child of the Goshinboku, a failed attempt to secure the future of his home.

Unlike its ancestor — which was a sight to behold with its silver and red leaves, and its brilliant aura and incandescent fruits — this tree showed no outer signs of being extraordinary. Any human would think that its magnificence came from its size; Sesshoumaru knew better.

While he mused in silence, his ears caught the distinct sound of engines in the distance. A ship was on its way to the mansion, and that meant the gates would open soon. In a flash, he flew back to the front of the building and reclaimed his original post among the shadows.

The main gate opened to reveal the small figures of two women. Their dark cloaks fluttered behind them as they strode out of the building and toward an awaiting shuttle. In the mean time, a larger ship appeared on the horizon, heading for the senator's house.

A strong gust of wind brought Sesshoumaru the scent of the girls, confirming his suspicions; one of them was Genma's granddaughter and she reeked strongly of the hanyou. He didn't need his nose to tell which one was her; her pale complexion and raven hair gave her away easily. That explained why he had been smelling the hanyou even though the bastard was nowhere to be seen.

But, what about the aura he had sensed? A soft brush of his aura against the girl's answered that question. What he had felt earlier in the day hadn't been the hanyou, after all.

It had been his planted seed.

Just as the girls loaded the shuttle and the doors closed behind them, the other ship landed next to it and a group of stinky wolves spilled out. The dog demon's nose wrinkled in disgust as he watched the girls' shuttle take off and the traitors look around in confusion. "He's here!" shouted the wolf demon with long, dark ponytail before drawing out his gun and running into the establishment. His cronies followed suit.

Sesshoumaru snorted at the wolf's misjudgment, but knowing that he was one step ahead of his competition pleased him nonetheless. "Jaken," he said to the transmitter on his wrist. "Be ready to take off." With an amused glint in his normally cold eyes, he didn't wait for an answer as he took off after the shuttle in a blur of white light.

He had found his compass and he had no intention of losing her trail.

* * *

Following his nose, Kouga ran through the halls of the senator's mansion with his gun in his hand, ready to blow the hanyou's head off the moment he caught sight of the bastard. The stench got stronger as he moved in a whirlwind until he stopped dead in front of a door. Unlike the previous ones he had passed through on his way there, this one stayed closed, earning an agitated growl from the demon.

While Kouga mindlessly poked at the control panel on the wall, the brown-haired human soldier that had been following him around cried out, "Sir! You can't go in there unannounced!"

When the wolf demon had stepped into the building with his men about an hour ago, the same soldier had blocked their way and introduced himself as Captain Houjo. He had claimed that he had been assigned to assist the wolves in their search.

"Assist me, my ass," grumbled Kouga in annoyance. So far, all the measly human had done was slow him down and whine like a pup as he struggled to keep up with the demon.

"Open it," the wolf growled when the young man finally caught up with him in front of the door.

"But, sir!" protested the captain as he tried to catch his breath.

Kouga was having none of it, though. He had already lost enough time. "Open," he growled out between clenched teeth, leaving the frightened human no choice but to heed his command.

"This is Lady Sango's private chambers," said Houjo as he proceeded to enter a long series of numbers into the panel. "It's always locked when she's not around and it requires a special code to enter." The young man glared at the wolf once he was finished and added seriously, "A code we can only use in case of _emergencies_."

Kouga rolled his eyes in annoyance. "As if I care," he grumbled right as the door slid open. Even before he stepped into the room, he knew this was not what he was looking for. The scent was strong here, but it was old. Besides, something was wrong with it; it had been this way since the first moment he caught it. But, he couldn't place what it was.

Growling in frustration, he turned on his heels and took to the halls once again.

"You won't even search the room?" squeaked the captain from behind him.

"There's nothing in there, you moron," hissed Kouga as he followed the hated scent down the hall.

A few wrong turns and several more rooms later, he was standing in front of yet another closed door. His nose assured him that this was what he had been looking for. Once his men joined him, he signaled two of them, Ginta and Hakkaku, to stand by the sides of the door and be ready to dive in while the rest of them covered the hall in case the hanyou escaped. He tightened his grip on his gun and smirked in anticipation while he waited for the captain to open the door.

When the metallic contraption slid open, Ginta and Hakkaku were the first ones to enter the small room, followed closely by their leader. The stench of the fugitive hit Kouga hard on the nose, causing the demon almost gag in disgust. But, what made him growl in frustration next was that it was old.

The room was empty.

Kouga's face scrunched up in disdain as he sniffed more than he had wished for. The hanyou hadn't been alone in this place, and the bastard certainly had had a good time here.

"What is going on here?" asked an elderly man's voice from the hall.

The captain was quick to reply. "They think the fugitive was here, Senator."

Ignoring the humans, Kouga made his way to the back of the room while his men piled in and started searching for clues. Another door slid open in front of him to reveal a tiny bathroom and a pile of laundry left on the floor. "Someone must have been in a hurry," he mumbled.

"Sir? Is that true?" asked Senator Tajiya as the wolf demon returned from the bathroom with a piece of cloth in his hands.

Kouga raised the garment to his nose and made a show of sniffing. His eyes rolled back, eliciting an angry blush from the senator and loud snickers from his comrades. "Delightful," he murmured distractedly. "But tainted, unfortunately."

The uncomfortable clearing of a throat brought his gaze back to their host, and a smirk tugged at his lips at the horrified look on the elderly human's face. "Tell me, Senator," he started as he swung the pink garment left and right on his forefinger. "Where's the girl that wore these panties?"

* * *

The elevator chimed their arrival, and not for the first time, Sango marveled at the fact that the ancient contraption still functioned. She sighed in relief once she stepped out of the confined space and into the hall leading to her destination. Being in this worn out building always unnerved her, but not so much as the ride she had to take upstairs. The hum of the archaic engine and the occasional squeak of the rusty wires that held the large box off the ground put her on edge whenever she visited her favorite merchant.

Well, her _ex_-favorite merchant.

She took two steps into the hall before she realized she wasn't being followed. She whirled around to see that her companion was still in the elevator, glaring at a piece of paper in her hand.

When the doctor had announced the 'good news' that morning, Kagome's face had registered a myriad of emotions in the span of a few seconds. But then, her expression had turned blank, and no matter how much Sango had tried, she couldn't draw out a single word from the young maid's ashen lips. After the visit to her grandfather's grave though, something shifted in the girl's demeanor. Now, her normally comforting blue orbs were fierce with an emotion the senator's daughter knew very well.

Fury.

Sango could feel it reciprocated in her own heart. Unfortunately, part of her anger was directed at herself. None of this would have happened if she hadn't been stupid enough to believe Miroku's lies or if she hadn't insisted on buying the fake S-android for her friend. To make matters worse, there wasn't much the young woman could do to amend her mistakes. She couldn't go to her father, the highest legal authority on the planet, and complain about a S-android she had bought illegally. She was the only daughter of the most powerful man on the face of the Earth, and it infuriated her that her hands were bound when it came to an insignificant impostor.

That didn't mean she was going to give up.

It wasn't going to be easy without her father's help, but she could still try and she knew where to start.

With a snarl meant for the man residing at the end of the hall, Sango stepped forward and took a hold of the young maid's elbow. "Come on, sweetie," she said as she gently coaxed the girl out of the elevator.

"Huh?" murmured Kagome, looking around in surprise. "We're there already?"

Leading the way to their destination, Sango flashed an encouraging grin over her shoulder. She stopped in front of the apartment where everything had started and glanced at her companion. Seeing the girl nervously biting her lip, Sango gave her a half hug. "I'll handle this, okay? You don't need to worry," she reassured her friend.

At Kagome's nod, the senator's daughter announced their presence with three decisive knocks on the door. She kept her expression neutral, knowing that the merchant would be watching them through the security camera.

Several moments later, the door opened to reveal a smiling Miroku. "Lady Sango! Kagome!" he exclaimed as if he hadn't been expecting to see them. "What a pleasant surprise!"

_Is it, really?_ Sango had to bite her tongue too keep from lashing at the man right away. She walked in, dragging Kagome by her hold on the girl's wrist. She didn't miss the chance to knock onto Miroku's shoulder on her way. "Oops! So sorry," she apologized lightly, not feeling the least bit regretful.

As the door closed behind them, Miroku turned to his guests, massaging his shoulder. "Please, don't worry. It didn't hurt," said the young man, but the wince that escaped him betrayed his pain.

_Good_, thought Sango with satisfaction. That had to leave a bruise. _It better!_

"To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you today?" asked the merchant, bringing Sango out of her thoughts about the various ways she could torture the man. "Would you like to browse the newest additions to my collection? I'm afraid there isn't much, but..." Miroku's voice trailed off as he waited for a response.

Sango looked at him for a few seconds, searching his face for any signs of discomfort. However, the merchant seemed completely at ease. _If he wants to play, I'm game._ Her eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second before she forced them wide open to give him her most innocent expression. "Miroku," she said with a well-placed pout as she stepped forward and trailed her finger up the front of his shirt. "The weirdest thing happened this morning."

It wasn't the first time Sango shamelessly flirted with the merchant. It always worked, and now was not an exception. His eyes glazed over as they followed her movements. "Oh, really?" he asked dreamily.

"Yes, really," cooed the senator's daughter. "Remember the last S-android you sold me?"

"I can't honestly say that I remember," he said with a misleadingly innocent expression on his face.

"Let me remind you then." She traced random symbols over his pounding heart as she listed the impostor's most striking features. "Long, silver hair, golden eyes, the strangest ears for those with _different tastes_ as you nicely put it, and the latest technology with real skin that requires organic energy resources to maintain?"

Miroku was giving her no signs apart from his rapid heartbeat, and Sango couldn't tell if that one was due to her actions or his lying. "Oh, that one," he mumbled with a slight raise of his eyebrows. Then, he furrowed his eyebrows as if concerned. "What about it? Is there something wrong?"

He sounded so clueless that Sango actually wondered for a moment if he honestly didn't know the truth before banishing that thought stubbornly. _Not bloody likely._ The fact that she almost fell for his façade again infuriated the young woman, and her voice gave away her irritation when she spoke.

"Unfortunately yes, there's something very wrong about it," she said. She fisted his shirt unconsciously, eliciting the first genuine reaction from the merchant as he gulped nervously. "It disappeared into thin air sometime last night." She eyed Miroku before asking, "Do you have any idea where it might have gone?"

"Oh, but robots do not wander on their own volition, my dear Lady Sango."

Sango's shoulders relaxed at Miroku's words. Of course, robots didn't wander on their own, but this one did since it was not a programmed machine. The merchant was about to confess to his wrongdoing. From that point on, it wouldn't take much to make him give away the fake S-android's location, and then, she would find a way to take care of him. She knew most of the diplomats in the galaxy, after all. She could always make up an excuse to get him arrested and once she got her hands on him, that little fucker was going to pay for messing with Kagome.

The senator's daughter could feel the expectant smile tug at the corners of her mouth as she waited Miroku to continue.

"So…" drawled Miroku before he fixed his questioning gaze on Sango. "Have you checked to see if anyone suspicious entered the house? Because, I'm pretty sure your S-android's stolen." At her incredulous look, he added jovially, "Oh, but don't worry! For the hefty price you pay, these S-androids come with a ten-year warranty and insurance by the manufacturer! We can ask for a replacement if you like! But, I'm afraid that we'll have to wait for a few months until they have a sufficient amount of orders to start producing the next batch."

Even though the merchant put on a good show, Sango instantly saw through his façade. _The asshole's trying to buy his time!_ At that moment, even the charming smile Miroku gave could not save him from the young woman's wrath. Her features contorted into a frightening scowl as she advanced on him. "Cut the shit, Miroku. We know that bastard was not a robot." She raised her fist threateningly when Miroku opened his mouth. "If you know what's good for you, you will not try to deny it."

Miroku sighed and closed his eyes in defeat. "How did you find out?"

Sango glanced at Kagome. She was too silent, looking out of the window to the wretched parts of the city. "It doesn't matter," the lady muttered as she focused back on her prey. "What matters is that you'll tell us who the hell he was and where we can find him. Or, so help me, God, I'll make sure that you regret ever knowing my name, Miroku."

Seeing that she was serious, the merchant looked away from her intense gaze. "Umm, I don't think you'd really want to know who he is."

"Why is that?" snapped Sango in irritation. The young man's reluctance was testing the limits of her already volatile temper. His silence could only mean one thing: their pseudo-S-android was someone terrible, someone bad enough to lie to an innocent like Kagome… or someone desperate enough to do so. At that thought, pieces of the puzzle fit in perfectly in Sango's mind, and she gasped in horror. "Oh, God. He is that fugitive everyone has been looking for, isn't he?"

Miroku gulped and barely nodded his head.

"Oh, for the love of…," growled the enraged woman as she pushed the merchant roughly, causing him to stagger back. "What were you thinking when you sent a criminal back home with us, you idiot?"

"Calm down," said Miroku slowly with his hands raised in a gesture of peace. "Inuyasha… He is harmless."

"The hell he is harmless!" screeched Sango even as her attention was drawn to her friend that still stood by the window.

"Why?" Kagome's question sounded more like a plea as she turned to face the duo. Wrapping her arms around her belly protectively, she fixed the merchant with her agonized gaze. "Why did you do it?"

Miroku sighed tiredly and raked his hand through his hair. "It wasn't planned, believe me. He showed up right before you arrived that day. He needed a place to hide and…"

Before he could finish, Sango interrupted him with a scream. "And, you thought we would be the perfect cover for a damned criminal! Are you out of your mind? For God's sake, he could have killed us!"

"Really, Sango," grumbled Miroku with a roll of his eyes, increasing Sango's ire even more by his casual use of her name. "He's my friend and he's just a thief. It's not like…"

"He stole from me."

At the sound of Kagome's timid voice, Miroku's words died in his throat. "What?" he asked in confusion. He looked the girl up and down, clearly sizing her up. "That's highly unlikely, my dear Kagome," he finally stated with an amused chuckle. "Inuyasha might be a thief, but he doesn't take from the poor and he certainly wouldn't steal anything that is not worth a fortune." When he noticed Sango's death glare, he added hurriedly, "Well at least, not since I met him." Clearing his throat in discomfort, he turned to the younger girl. "I mean no offense, but I don't see what a poor maid like you could possess that could pique his interest."

Seeing Kagome's eyes shine with tears, Sango's fists clenched in rage. _How dare he insult her like that?_ She was ready to bust the insolent merchant's face up when her friend's soft voice broke through her red haze.

"Everything," whispered Kagome. "My dignity, my honor, my innocence, my…" She closed her eyes, and her jaw clenched. "Everything," she gritted out forcefully this time. "I need them back, Miroku."

Miroku's eyes widened as the rest of him froze, and Sango knew that he figured out what the girl left unsaid. _Oh yes, bastard. He stole her heart. Even an idiot can see that!_

Unfortunately, Kagome's unintentional declaration did not bring out the desired response. The merchant said nothing as he continued to stare at the girl.

Sango sighed in exasperation and closed her eyes. For a few seconds, she tried to calm herself by taking deep breaths. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she asked, "Where did he run off to?"

"I can't tell you that," was Miroku's quick reply.

"Oh yes, you will," snarled Sango before she took out the gun she had hidden beneath her cloak and poked the merchant's guts with it. His eyes widened in both surprise and fear. Satisfied with his reaction, she gave him a sickeningly sweet smile as she waited for him to talk.

"Y-you don't understand," sputtered Miroku, looking down at the small but deadly laser gun aimed at the most precious part of his body. "I-I can't tell you th-that, because I honestly do not know."

"You lie!"

"No!" Miroku cried out desperately. "I'm telling the tru-…"

The rest of his words were drowned out by a loud crack followed by the sound of something heavy hitting the wall.

The trio whirled around in shock. Sango's gaze first landed on the ruined door of Miroku's apartment as it toppled off the wall it had crashed against. She heard the merchant groan, "Not again! I had that door installed this week! Dammit!"

She would have laughed at his misery, but her attention was drawn to the man standing by the door. He was tall with a dark cloak concealing his lean frame. His pale face was sculpted to perfection, and Sango thought that he looked handsome.

And, dangerous.

What peeked her curiosity above her concern for her safety was the intruder's remarkable resemblance to the pseudo-S-android with his long, silver hair and striking, golden eyes. And, that curiosity was what compelled her to ask, "Who the hell are you?"

The stranger's gaze swept over her quickly as if she wasn't worth his attention before it landed on Kagome. He looked her up and down, making the girl squirm and inch closer to Sango. Then, he dismissed her too and glared at the merchant, who was now silent as a stone behind the senator's daughter.

Never looking away from Miroku, he walked in. Sango could see his black leather-clad legs with each silent but determined step he took. She was frozen in her place despite her growing fear until he stopped in front of her.

"Move," he growled under his breath, and thrown off by the command in his voice, Sango obeyed without a second thought. In the blink of an eye, he was next to Miroku with his long, clawed fingers around the merchant's neck.

Miroku's legs kicked the air futilely as they hovered a few feet off the ground. "Shit!" he cried out.

The S-android's look-alike didn't even flinch at the human's attempts to get free. "It's obvious that these bitches are too soft to make you talk."

"Hey!" cried out Sango indignantly. The way he referred to the women in the room was offensive enough to snap the lady out of her trance.

However, the intruder acted as if she wasn't there. He narrowed his eyes and — to Sango's surprise — sniffed his captive before snorting in disdain. "Where is the hanyou headed, half-breed?" he snarled.

Sango moved closer to Kagome protectively, shielding her frozen friend from the man's sight. While her body moved on autopilot, her mind was trying to process the new information. _If he wanted us to make Miroku talk, he must be after the fugitive as well. He called him what? Hanyou? What is a hanyou? And why the hell did he call Miroku a half-breed?_

Her confusion was reflected by Miroku as he sputtered out, "H-half-breed?"

Disregarding the merchant's question, the intruder snarled, "Speak. Now." His hold on Miroku tightened, and the young man's feet rose higher off the ground.

Clawing at his attacker's hand, Miroku cried out, "I don't know, I swear!"

The stranger was about to break the merchant's neck; Sango could tell by the way his fingers turned even whiter around the captive's throat. Without thinking, she turned her gun on him and yelled, "Stop it! Release him or I'll shoot!"

Unexpectedly, the silver-haired man stopped choking Miroku to death but kept his hold on him. Sango was surprised for a moment, thinking that he finally acknowledged her presence. But then, it turned out that his change of mind had nothing to do with her threat; his attention was captured by something else. She could almost see his nose twitch as he leaned closer to the merchant and sniffed at the hands gripping his wrist for dear life. "It looks like there's more to you than meets the eye," he mumbled, staring at Miroku's gloved right hand.

Then, his mouth turned down in disgust. "Pathetic," he spat out before releasing the human to crumble in a heap against the wall. "I don't have time to waste with the likes of you." The intruder growled his annoyance as he headed to the door. Before he stepped out, he stopped as if he had forgotten something and looked back over his shoulder. "I'm going after him," he said.

Sango didn't understand what this strange creature really wanted or why he even bothered to inform them of his intentions. She was even more confused when she followed his gaze to Kagome.

The girl was watching him with a curious look. Then, she did something that shocked the senator's daughter to the core: without a word, she followed him out the door like an obedient puppy.

"The hell?"cried out Sango as she watched her friend leave with the dangerous stranger. "Kagome!" she called out but was met with silence. She moved to go after her but stopped after taking two steps. She whirled around and narrowed her eyes at the merchant before a smirk tugged at her lips. Pointing the barrel of her gun at his groin, she raised an eyebrow at the confused man. "After you," she sneered.

End of Chapter 8


	9. In Pursuit of a Fugitive

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha or the other characters from the anime/manga, nor do I make any money by writing this story.

**Author's note:** My apologies for the unreasonably long delay. I've been blocked, frustrated and tired. But, I'm still alive and I never abandoned my plans to finish my stories. The reviews I sporadically received helped with my determination, so thanks to my reviewers for every word they wrote. I don't know if there's anyone left out there to read this, but here it goes...

_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree._

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter 9: In Pursuit of a Fugitive**

The brilliant azure of the sky slowly faded into black as the shuttle approached the limit of the atmosphere. Relaxing his grip on the arms of the seat he had been forced into merely an hour ago, Miroku opened his mouth, once again, to voice his protest. Before he could utter a single word, though, a low growl that eerily reminded him of his longtime partner-in-crime stopped him. His breath left him in a long sigh, and his shoulders sagged forward in defeat.

It wasn't like his words would have made a difference anyway. Nothing that had come out of his mouth had helped his situation so far. On the contrary, in his attempts to claim that he was of no use in their quest to find the infamous hanyou, he had inadvertently helped them realize that he was, indeed, the only one who knew Inuyasha well enough to predict his moves.

The sad part was that Miroku couldn't blame himself for being stupid and blurting out random information. Anyone that was faced with that sizzling, green substance dripping down those long, deadly claws would have turned into a blabbering idiot.

The memory of what that acidic poison could do to steel made him shudder even as it drew his gaze to their pilot. Sitting still as a stone in the cockpit, the guy gave him the creeps. The menacing aura radiating off of him and his stoic countenance made Miroku's skin crawl despite the fact that he resembled the only person the merchant trusted with his life.

Not for the first time, his eyes took in the silver-white glow of the stranger's neatly combed, ridiculously long hair and the golden hue of his cold eyes. As striking as those features were, Miroku could have written them off as coincidence were it not for the man's straight nose, strong jaw and his penchant for growling at every given chance. That creature was certainly related to Inuyasha, and Miroku wasn't sure if that was a good thing. In any case, seeing the hanyou's partial lookalike with an expression as warm as death freaked the merchant out.

He sensed Sango shift in her seat behind him. Her nervous movements reminded him that he wasn't the only one to feel that way about their mysterious pilot. It seemed to Miroku that the senator's ferocious daughter couldn't decide where to aim her gun. It was obvious that she didn't trust their yet-to-be-named guide any more than she trusted the droid smuggler. Still, she had been adamant to stick with her maid once she had realized that she couldn't reason with the young woman despite her many attempts.

Careful not to alarm Sango and earn yet another jab to his abused ribs, Miroku slowly turned his head to peek at the major cause behind his abduction. Kagome sat silently next to her mistress, hugging her dark cloak around her small form protectively. In that moment, she looked more vulnerable than Miroku had ever seen the girl. The sadness in her large blue orbs was accompanied by a hint of curiosity and amazement as she watched the Earth shrink beyond the small window by her seat. A soft, bittersweet smile grew on the his lips as he realized that it was probably the first time the girl had ever traveled so far from home, which also added to his confusion.

Try as he might, he couldn't rationalize her actions. Surely, the hanyou had practically lied to the girl by playing along with the merchant's impromptu plan and pretending to be an S-android. With no little amount of amusement, Miroku decided that he could safely assume his friend had taken his role to heart and had not held back when it came to certain aspects of being a sex robot. He could only guess that finding out the truth had made the young woman feel fooled, even used. But, was it enough of a motivation to go to such lengths to find a supposedly dangerous criminal by tagging along with a most certainly dangerous stranger, no less?

While Miroku pondered why such a timid, good-natured character acted so recklessly and spitefully, Kagome's hand came up to tug at the collar of her cloak. Her delicate, pale fingers hovered over the side of her neck, almost touching the pale skin there. And then, as if she did something wrong, she snatched her hand back down, fisting it in her lap to keep it in place. Her eyes, now filled with tears, shifted to the front and a gasp escaped her lips. Wondering and a little bit alarmed by her sudden reaction, Miroku returned his attention to the cockpit.

Their pilot was as stoic as ever as he effortlessly guided them to a rapidly growing object that glowed impossibly white against the darkness of the empty space. At first glance, it was hard to decipher the shape of what Miroku assumed was a mothership. He cocked his head from left to right in curiosity. The closer they got, the more it looked like…

"A _fang_? Really?"

His question was ignored by his companions, which no longer surprised the young man. With a defeated sigh, he slumped in his seat and joined the others in their game of silence.

It was not long before they reached the mothership. The small shuttle slowly floated beneath the huge 'fang' until it stopped completely. With a sudden jolt, they were moving upward. Miroku blinked repeatedly as the darkness of the open space was replaced with a blinding white light. By the time his eyes adjusted to the new environment, they had stopped ascending.

Through the windows, he could see the inside of the ship was no different than the outside as smooth white walls met his curious gaze. The room was only large enough to contain one more shuttle. Miroku glanced back and forth, expecting to see silver-haired, golden-eyed staff running around the dock, before a pang in his ribs brought his search to a halt.

He looked up to see Sango's narrowed gaze trained on him. She briefly glanced at the retreating back of their pilot and her maid before raising an eyebrow in impatience. Miroku stood up with a resigned sigh. As reluctant as he was to set foot in yet another unknown territory, the barrel of Sango's gun poking at his back was enough of a push for the merchant.

While they followed the stranger at a close distance, Miroku found his initial observation confirmed. There was no staff to be found, nor were there any signs of familiar technology. The soft glow of the walls surrounding them from all sides created an eerie atmosphere that was only accentuated by the silence closing in on them; not even their footsteps made a sound.

A shiver ran up the young man's spine. It was like being suspended between worlds.

Up front, a small portion of the white wall trembled and shrunk to the ground, creating an arched doorway just as the stranger leading the group reached it. Without breaking his stride, he passed through, Kagome close behind him.

Miroku stopped at the threshold, ignoring the sting of Sango's gun on his ribs as he did so. Tentatively, he let his fingertips touch the substance the ship was made of. To his relief, he wasn't fried to death once his bare skin contacted the glowing material. He could tell it oozed some type of energy that was nothing like he had seen in his travels but still felt somewhat familiar. Up close, its structure was not as perfectly smooth as he had imagined. "Weird," he mumbled, his fingers exploring the texture with increasing trepidation. "It almost feels like… _bones_."

Miroku shuddered and instinctively stepped back only to be poked by the hard metal against his back. "Where do you think you're going?" snapped its wielder.

With a huff, he turned to face the young woman. "Sango, you can't be serious about this," he practically whined. She held up her gun and placed its barrel directly under his chin as her eyebrow rose in challenge. Miroku quickly raised his hands in surrender, but his mouth had other ideas. "Come on!" he begged. "I know I'm not your favorite person right now, but listen to me! We don't know anything about this freak! He could be a psychopath! How do we know he won't kill us once he gets what he wants?"

He knew they had to be on the same side if they wanted to come out of this madness without a scratch. He could see the doubt in Sango's eyes, and his insides made a little dance of joy when she opened her mouth to answer. However, they were interrupted by a high-pitched voice shouting from the corridor beyond the open door. "Silence!"

"Dammit!" cursed Miroku before a two foot tall, toad-like creature shuffled through the door, waving a wooden staff with two shrunken heads on it in a threatening manner.

"You won't use such language when you're talking about Lord Sesshoumaru, you dimwitted half-breed!"

Taken aback by being addressed as a half-breed for the second time that day, it took Miroku a couple seconds to realize that they were finally graced with the name of their mysterious companion. "Sesshoumaru? Is that what he's called?"

The creature's big, round eyes almost popped out of their sockets in outrage. "It's _Lord_ Sesshoumaru to you and everyone else, you mongrel!" he squeaked. "And, I am his loyal servant, Jaken. Now, stop your ridiculous mating dance and follow me. My lord will not be kept waiting." Not lingering for a response, Jaken strode back to where he came from, leaving the merchant gaping after him.

"Ma-mating what?" he stuttered in confusion. Sango looked as confused as he was, but a telltale blush stained her cheeks, making Miroku forget about the crazy toad and his nonsense.

He could feel his gaze soften as he stared into her expressive brown orbs, and he prayed that everything he felt for this woman was not openly written on his face. "Sango…"

The minute vulnerability he had caught in her eyes was gone the moment he opened his mouth, replaced by the hardness he had become used to seeing. "Look," she whispered, leaning in close and covering him with her flowery scent. "You're right. I have no reason to trust this guy. But at least, he gave me no reason to distrust him, either. Now, shut up and walk."

Miroku's heart fell to the pits of his stomach. Frustrated and upset, he turned to follow after Jaken. "Great," he muttered under his breath as he forced his feet to move. "I'm stuck in a giant, flying fang, being harassed by a two foot green dwarf, and the woman of my dreams hates me. Damn you, Inuyasha."

* * *

Within the last several centuries, humans joined the other intelligent species of the galaxy in their never-ending search for new energy sources beyond their home planet. Their endeavors sent them to, and recently beyond, the limits of the solar system. On their way, they had built countless facilities in the neighboring planets, consequently turning them into isolated cities as people lived, produced and traded in these confined environments. And where there was trade, there was transportation.

Besides the larger industrial and commercial ships going back and forth between the planets, there were also the smaller ones carrying passengers as thousands of people traveled everyday for either business or personal matters. Among the large fleet of space-transports available, the interplanetary shuttles were convenient due to their busy schedules and their reasonable prices. For those reasons, nobody honestly considered complaining about the cheap refreshments, the poor comfort level of the worn seats or the size of the restrooms.

Except one very agitated hanyou.

Inuyasha grunted as his elbow hit the hard surface of the wall behind him just at the right angle to send pins and needles through his entire arm. The girl between him and the dirty sink moaned in response, mistaking his exclamation of pain as one of passion.

Despite his discomfort, he couldn't help but roll his eyes. Inuyasha was feeling a lot of things at the moment, but to his disappointment, passion was not one of them. Even with his mouth attached to the redhead's ample cleavage and with his hands full of her voluptuous bottom, he was finding it difficult to feel the lust he knew he was capable of. He was surprised she hadn't yet noticed the lack of the requisite hardness in his lower regions.

_That_ was a major cause of annoyance for the hanyou. He couldn't recall a time when he had failed to perform, and Inuyasha could think of countless trivial factors to blame for this specific occurrence.

The room was too cramped for two people; the stink of the toilet, which would have been undetected to others, clogged his sensitive nose; and the girl proved to be too experienced with her bold moves and fake moans, though he couldn't figure out since when it had started bothering him.

And the nausea churning in his belly… Well, that had to be the result of the location of their little escapade.

It didn't matter, though. He couldn't pinpoint the reason behind his motivation, nor did he care to do so, but he was adamant to see through what he had started.

_Nausea be damned!_

With renewed vigor, he attacked what exposed skin he could reach with his mouth and let his hands roam wherever they wished. Once his fingers reached the back of her knee, he gripped her leg and hitched it up and around his hips. The girl's heart stuttered and her fingers dug into his back over the thick layers of the suit he wore. He hadn't paid attention to where her hands had been until they glided up to get a hold of his jaw and guided his face to meet hers. And then, her lips were alarmingly close to his and further closing the distance with determination. His stomach screamed for attention, and his throat closed. With a sudden jerk of his head, he dodged her attempt.

Again.

Oblivious, the girl eagerly coated his jaw and then his neck with lipstick and saliva while he wondered, once again, what it was with this girl and her obsession for kissing. In the five or so minutes since they had sneaked into this room, he hadn't let her do it once. But, the damn girl wasn't getting the message. For some reason that he refused to ponder about, he didn't want her lips anywhere near his. And, what Inuyasha didn't want, he didn't do — especially not in the bedroom.

Or in this case, a shitty bathroom.

However, baring his neck to this stranger was an equally great source of discomfort for the hanyou. Tugging at the long locks of hair falling down her back without any effort to be gentle, he effectively switched their positions. She moaned in approval of his harshness, mistaking it for passion, and held onto his shoulders as his lips latched onto her neck. Stubbornly, he ignored the bitter taste her skin left on his tongue and the dizziness that now accompanied the nausea.

His ears, disguised under the charm he wore, twitched at the sound of her breathless whisper.

"Do you have protection?"

He had been so wrapped up in the fight to keep himself together that it took him a couple seconds longer than necessary to process her question. "Protection?" he mumbled stupidly.

"Well," said the girl, followed by an exaggerated moan. "I'm on birth control anyway…"

The moment her words registered with the hanyou, he recoiled. He didn't need protection for birth control; that was not an issue for him. But, the girl's lingering suggestion that he could stick his precious parts into her if he so wished…

His stomach lurched.

Never had he allowed himself to get close to someone without his junk safely wrapped up — apart from one certain girl, which he refused to think about. The mere idea of leaving himself so exposed appalled him. And now that she had laid it out there, he had to accept the fact that he couldn't have done it even if he had adequate protection.

Gritting his teeth, he pushed off of the girl and nearly collapsed onto the sink with a groan. His companion's concerned questions were drowned out by the pounding of his heartbeat in his ears. Holding his weight by his grip on the sink and willing the bile that had risen in his throat back, he forced the words out. "Sorry… don't… feel well… must be… something I ate."

"Oh, no," she cried out. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Her hand reached up to his shoulder, but he instinctively flinched back from her touch. "Please," he whispered, doing his best not to tell the girl to fuck off. "Gimme a few minutes."

"Oh, okay," she said meekly before, thankfully, hurrying out of the restroom.

Finally alone, Inuyasha took in several deep breaths, willing his stomach to settle down. Even though the stink of the toilet still irritated his sensitive nose, he found that he felt much better now that the girl was gone.

Just as he decided he was good enough to return to his seat, a sharp pang in his chest knocked the breath out of the hanyou. The sensation, not quite painful but still disconcerting, spread through his insides before concentrating on his heart. It tugged and tugged until his knees gave out under the strain. His hold on the sink kept him partially upright as he gasped for breath. The moment the attack had passed, the nausea was back in full force.

"Fuck," he grunted before he doubled over the toilet and emptied the contents of his stomach in violent heaves.

Groaning, he climbed up to his feet, feeling much better physically but pissed at his body's bad timing to act strange. He glared at the image of the dark haired gentleman in the mirror, staring back at him with gray eyes alight with anger. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" he growled.

As if to answer his question, the scar on his ear made itself known with a soft tingle before it started burning. Almost instantly, he was bombarded with a myriad of emotions, none of which belonged to him. Once the wave of alien sensations was over, he was left breathless and the one name he had refused to think again was at the forefront of his mind.

_Kagome._

Somehow, the girl had done more to him than just leaving a permanent mark on his skin — the skin that never scarred — and Inuyasha didn't like it at all. After his task was over, he was going to find out what it was and make sure it was undone.

He attempted a confident smirk that fell short of being convincing even to the hanyou's eyes. He sighed before unleashing the sanitizer on his hands. It seemed that after he handed in the jewel and got his payment, a trip back to Earth was in order.

He was going to see her again.

That thought sent off a few butterflies in his chest, causing his movements to halt in surprise. He shook his head and returned to cleaning his hands, drenching them in the cleansing chemical until he was satisfied that the stench of the other girl was gone. He glanced at the mirror one more time before leaving the restroom.

His image in the mirror was grinning like a fool.

* * *

The stranger's ridiculously long, silver hair swayed gently, almost hypnotically, as Kagome followed him into the ship. With his tall frame rigid and his strides confident, he led her through a maze of corridors, each one the same sterile white as the next. The energy surrounding them unnerved the young woman mostly because of the surprising fact that she could actually _feel_ it.

The soft buzz it created on her senses reminded her of the tingling sensation she had experienced when the man in front of her had barged into Miroku's apartment. She was certain he was related to her runaway S-android in one way or the other, and that had been enough reason for Kagome to follow his lead blindly.

Related as they might be, she couldn't recall feeling like this in Yash's presence. Perhaps, the similarities ended there, and he didn't possess the same kind of power this stranger did. Then again, the young maid's skin had tingled whenever she had been close to the fake S-android; the electricity in the air had been palpable. She had believed it to be the result of the attraction she held for him.

Perhaps, she had been wrong.

After all, it wouldn't have been the first time. She had been a fool, believing the lies she had been told without question, watching him with awe and attributing every single thing she had noticed about him to the miracles of technology. She hadn't even stopped for a moment and questioned why anyone would make a droid that could perspire, but that might have been because even his sweat had been attractive to her.

Looking at where and with whom she was, Kagome had to admit that she still didn't know better. The fact that she was now consorting with suspiciously dangerous strangers and setting out on a wild goose chase in the galaxy in pursuit of a fugitive certainly meant that she was the biggest fool in the universe. She didn't think her new companion would harm her, but she hadn't thought that her precious S-android would have turned out to be a living, breathing man, either — a living, breathing _criminal_.

Her baby's father was a lying, thieving jerk who might have killed people in cold blood.

Kagome shuddered at that thought, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around her belly. The subtle movement did not go unnoticed by her guide, and he glanced at her briefly. His sharp gaze was unsettling, reminding her of another set of golden eyes. Her arms tightened around her torso, and she was grateful for the cloak she wore for hiding her vulnerability.

She didn't want to feel exposed anymore.

The young woman sighed in relief when her guide released her from the weight of his piercing stare. _So alike, yet so different…_

Yash's eyes held the warmth that her current companion severely lacked. The ever present sparkle in their golden depths was so much like that of a mischievous child, and at times, of a devoted lover. Even though he was a conniving jerk, his eyes seemed to speak of someone entirely different. And, maybe he was.

It was too bad that she no longer cared to know.

Did she?

The air left her lungs in a huff as she hugged her cloak tighter. Confused and more than a little frustrated, she willed her mind to stay focused on her immediate goal, but the memory of those eyes would not leave her alone. The long mane of exceptionally smooth silver hair she was glaring at didn't help either, making her fingers twitch in longing for a slightly shorter, thicker and messier version of it — one that came with a set of adorable dog ears.

She couldn't help it; she wondered if her baby would have similar traits. The vision of a golden-eyed, chubby toddler with cute dog-like ears peeking out of its mess of silver hair flashed before her eyes, and for the first time since she had found her S-android missing, a small smile grew on her lips.

Among the chaos that was her emotions, she was certain of one thing: She loved her baby ever since the moment she had learned of it.

It was astonishing how quickly she had accepted the tiny creature growing within her belly, especially considering the circumstances of how it came to be. Even more surprising was the fact that it had already changed her. She remembered the moment Sango had suggested she could get rid of it. The cold fury that had erupted in the young maid's heart was like nothing she had experienced before. Since that moment, she knew she could kill anyone that dared harm her baby.

However, even the fiercely protective momma bear she had become was prone to fear.

She was afraid that she wasn't equipped to take care of another person. She was afraid of people's reaction to the origins of her pregnancy once she returned home. That is, if she would still have a home to return to. She doubted that she could hide the alien nature of her baby, and even though Senator Tajiya had been kind to her all her life, it was unlikely that he would overlook the glaring fact that she hid, fed and slept with a criminal under his roof.

She was determined to find said criminal and make him pay for the wrongs he had done to her in one way or the other. That was the only clear picture she could imagine for her future even though the picture changed from one minute to the next. Sometimes she was merciful; she would grab his ear after slapping him silly and hand him over to the authorities, watching with a smile as he was dragged to be locked away for good. Other times, it was more volatile; she would imagine herself sticking a gun into his mouth and screaming all the ways she was going to torture him until he was crying like a baby and begging for her forgiveness. Only a couple of times did she find herself daydreaming of using her tongue instead of a gun and making him beg out of desire instead of fear. But those rogue fantasies were quickly crushed under the weight of her fury.

Still, in those brief moments when her pride and anger were forgotten and her thoughts escaped the boundaries of reason, she saw him gazing at her with the same look of adoration she had caught a few times within the confines of her bedroom and reverently caressing the nonexistent bump in her belly as he had done with every inch of her body. And then ruthlessly, perilously, her treacherous heart would dare _hope_.

But hope for what? That he would change his ways in a moment's notice, drop his dreams — that is, if he even had dreams — and abandon whatever twisted life he led to devote himself to her and their unborn baby? Would someone like him even consider such an option?

_Ridiculous_.

Now that she had an idea of who and what he really was, she didn't even know if she should tell him about the baby or if she even wanted to. Besides, the note he had so considerately left her made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with her. She couldn't imagine his disposition would change if he knew she was carrying a part of him within her.

Thinking about the note made her blood boil once more. The way he had worded it… It was as if he expected her to go after him. Her hands closed in tight fists, and a fierce scowl twisted her lovely features with the return of her outrage. She couldn't believe the audacity of the guy. Who did he think she was? A clingy, whiny damsel in distress who couldn't live without the jerk that took advantage of her? Did he think so highly of himself or so little of her? How dare he?

But she _was_ going after him, wasn't she? So he had been right, hadn't he?

The jerk.

Her jaw tensed as her pride once again broke through the haze of her emotions. She didn't need anyone, let alone that jerk. She was inexperienced, perhaps, but she certainly was not an invalid. She could do it alone if she had to. She didn't want his help even if he gave it willingly. She wasn't pursuing him because she expected anything from him. The only reason she was here, trying to find him was so that she could yell at his face that she didn't care for him enough to go after him and that he could go to hell for all she cared.

And, that he was a jerk.

A single nod of her head sealed the agreement between her heart and her mind at that specific point. Unfortunately, so focused she had been on her inner debate that she failed to notice that her guide's quick strides had come to a halt and she collided with his back. Her startled cry was drowned within the man's long mane. She quickly stepped back, spitting silver strands that stuck to her mouth and noted with relief that he didn't seem to notice her clumsiness.

Either that or he didn't deign to acknowledge her presence unless necessary.

She peeked around her black-clad companion to see yet another door slid soundlessly open in front of him. A few more steps following her guide took her into a large, oval room much different than the maze of corridors that never seemed to end. The smooth, rounded white walls were replaced by a see-through material at the front, creating an impressive 'windshield' that took up half of what she supposed was the command deck.

Her breath hitched at the sight. The moon's silvery surface took up one third of the view, and beyond that, the stars shone in millions of tiny specs, challenging her conception of infinity.

And here, she had thought the view outside of her small window mere minutes ago had been spectacular.

_Blasphemy!_

She had never been to open space before. She had never had a reason to. The magnificence of what lay before her eyes left her breathless. Every single star felt like a firefly just beyond her reach, each one as mysterious as the next, presenting her with endless possibilities. Her skin prickled with excitement, and a fire she had never felt before ignited in her veins. She knew she could spend the rest of her life exploring what the universe had to offer, and she'd never get bored.

But, first thing first.

With a significant effort, she brought her gaze back to the room and gasped in surprise. There was nothing in there apart from her guide, standing still in the middle of the large space like a marble statue. He seemed to be staring ahead, lost in thought as she had been only moments before, but she couldn't bring herself to believe that he was as amazed at the sight before him.

"Jaken." The murmured word broke the stillness of the room, making Kagome jump in surprise.

"Coming, my lord!" echoed a shrill voice in answer from behind the girl. Something tugged at the skirts of her cloak, pushing her to the side as a small figure squeezed itself into the room. "Excuse me!" it squeaked indignantly as Kagome's gaze fell on the top of a very bald, very green head.

Her face distorted half in disgust and half in amusement as she took in the toad-like features of the newcomer. The tiny creature scurried in a mess of dark robes and green skin before coming to a stop in front of his master. Gasping for breath, he leaned against the staff he had been carrying, and his large, bulging eyes looked up at the tall, statuesque man with adoration.

Kagome's stomach lurched when she noticed the staff had two rather ugly heads perched on top of it, and her hand flew to her mouth to stop the bile that rose in her mouth. She didn't hear the lord talk, but the flick of his eyes must have been enough of a command for Jaken. "Yes, my Lord Sesshoumaru!" the creature yelped before shuffling to the front of the room.

_Sesshoumaru_. Finally learning the name of her silver-haired companion, Kagome tested it in her mind and found it as unusual as the one that plagued her mind since she had first heard it at Miroku's place earlier that day. She added one more check to the list of things that suggested that the two men were related.

While she hesitated at the doorway, Jaken knocked on the floor with the base of his staff, rotating it left and right with no significant pattern that Kagome could decipher. To her horror, the two ugly heads opened their mouths, emitting no sound that her ears could capture. Suddenly, the once empty room was filled with screens and control panels, and a hole appeared on the floor behind Sesshoumaru. A large, white object ascended from the hole, stopping to hover a couple feet off the ground. From where Kagome stood, it resembled a fang with its pointy edge on top. Accompanied by a soft swish of his cloak, Sesshoumaru gracefully settled on it. His tall figure disappeared behind the back of what was apparently his command chair. His clawed fingers lay motionless on the arm of the chair while Jaken shuffled left and right in haste, playing with the controls and giving feedback to his stoic lord every few seconds.

"Honestly, is he going to fly this monstrosity by himself?"

Startled by the sudden voice near her, Kagome jumped slightly. Her head snapped to the side to see Miroku standing next to her with his arms crossed over his chest and watching the scene with amusement. Sensing her gaze, he glanced at her with a small grin. "Impressive little toad, is he not?"

Kagome felt the corners of her lips twitch into an answering smile before she remembered that she was angry with the charming merchant. Being around Miroku had always been easy. Even though he had only known her as Lady Sango's little maid, he had always treated her as if she too was a lady. He had neither overlooked her presence as most people did, making her feel insignificant, nor had he made her uncomfortable by looking at her the way he did with Sango. He had simply been friendly and welcoming.

That was why his treachery hurt as much as it did.

Miroku's face fell at her expression, and he quickly returned his attention to the ridiculous creature running around like a headless chicken. She frowned, wondering if he even cared about the hurt he had caused.

A soft touch on her shoulder brought her gaze to Sango, who was glaring daggers at the back of the merchant's head. Kagome smiled when the young woman's eyes met hers, grateful to know that she had someone who was ready to go to such lengths to stand by her side. In response, Sango's grip tightened on her, reassuring the girl that she wasn't alone in this unpleasant adventure.

"Lord Sesshoumaru!" Jaken's high-pitched voice broke through the two women's silent conversation. "We're ready to take off at your command, master. What is our destination?"

"That is up to our guest, Jaken," Sesshoumaru announced unexpectedly, surprising the trio still standing by the door. He turned along with his seat, fixing his gaze on Kagome.

Taken aback, the girl stuttered. "M-me?" She glanced at her friends only to see their equally puzzled expressions. "Wh-what?"

Sesshoumaru snorted at her trepidation before motioning her over with a slight twist of his clawed fingers. "Come here, girl."

Kagome moved hesitantly, taking strength from Sango's proximity as the lady matched her strides by her side. Her small, unsure steps faltered once she reached the center of the room where Sesshoumaru stood waiting. From the corner of her eye, she saw Miroku hovering behind Sango protectively, which was odd considering the merchant's reluctance to accompany them on this journey for fear of his precious life.

Sesshoumaru stepped closer to the young maid, sparing a dismissive glance at Sango's scowling face when she practically growled in warning. His golden eyes appraised Kagome's face for a moment before they fell on her neck. His stare was intense, making her feel exposed as if he could see the fading scar on her skin through the thick layers of her cloak. Reflexively, her hand flew up to cover the mark, her fingertips gliding under the fabric to meet the marred skin beneath. Before they made contact, she yanked her hand back, unwilling to experience the overwhelming sensations the act would surely cause in front of anyone.

She turned her accusing stare to the silver-haired stranger only to find that his normally stoic features contorted into a knowing smirk. "The map, Jaken," he ordered as he continued to eye the girl.

"Coming, my lord!"

Kagome blinked and found herself standing in the middle of the galaxy. Her mouth fell open as her wide eyes fell on the fist-sized Earth floating in front of her nose. She tried to touch it and gasped when her fingers passed right through the image.

Sesshoumaru leaned forward, bringing his face close to hers and breaking her trance. "Now," he whispered as if telling a secret. "What you felt here…," his voice trailed off as he pointed to her neck. Her breath caught in her throat when she realized that somehow he _knew_. His clawed finger lowered to hover over her heart before he finished, "…feel it here."

Confused, she looked up at him questioningly, but he moved to stand behind her small form, leaving her free to stare at the three dimensional map of the galaxy instead. "Close your eyes, and tell me where he is," he commanded.

Kagome did as she was told, not knowing how she was supposed to tell the fugitive's whereabouts and afraid to find out. Her determination to chew him out for the way he had treated her was greater than her fear though, and if this was the only way to make it happen, she was going to endure it.

Ignoring the world behind her closed eyelids, Kagome focused on the part of her body that threatened to burst out of its cage every time she thought about him. It was easy to recall, among all the other sensations, the strange tug that she had felt whenever she had touched the mark. Now that she was paying attention, she could feel that beneath all the excited and nervous fluttering, her heart was being pulled in the same direction.

In her mind's eye, she saw a red string, taut and glowing like a laser beam, protruding from her chest only to disappear into the unknown on the other end. It was so vivid that she was surprised she hadn't noticed it before. She gave it a mental tug, questioning her sanity while she did so, and gasped when she actually felt the strain. Intrigued, she did it again and again, wondering if she could force whatever was on the other end closer. Forgetting that she was dealing with an intangible subject, she raised her hand to grasp the pretty red line.

"Good," came Sesshoumaru's voice from behind her. She opened her eyes to see that her index finger, which had been aligned with the invisible line in her mental image, was pointing at a red planet on the map. "Jaken, set the coordinates. We're going to Mars."

Kagome's eyes followed the man's retreating figure as she asked, "How? Why?" He didn't turn or stop to acknowledge her query before he disappeared into the maze of corridors.

A warm caress on her back brought her gaze to Sango to see the questions that were bothering her reflected back to her in the young woman's mocha orbs.

"I don't know," she mumbled as she turned away from her lady. Looking at the stars that, like _him_, seemed to be just out of her reach, she was overwhelmed by confusion, helplessness and the hurt that was deeply rooted in her heart. Her fingers reached for the bite mark she now realized was more than what it seemed, and this time, she didn't stop them.

"Apparently, I don't know anything at all."

* * *

"You're back earlier than expected," Rin quipped as she saw Kouga enter the command deck with a larger group than he had set out with.

"Nice to see you too, Rin," shot back the wolf demon with a smirk.

"What's this?" she asked, eyeing the newest additions to their crew. "You were supposed to collect a hanyou, Kouga, not a bunch of humans."

Coming to stand in front of her, Kouga tilted his head toward the young and rather good-looking officer by his side. "This is Captain Hojo," he introduced. Taking advantage of the fact that the young captain's eyes were glued to the pretty woman clad in leather, he rolled his eyes mockingly as he added, "He's here to _assist_ us in our search." With an exaggerated wave of his hand, he pointed to Rin. "Lady Rin is my second in command."

"Pleasure to meet you, my lady," said the young man, bowing his head in reverence.

Rin nodded curtly, irritated by the Captain's charming smile which, combined with his boyish looks, gave her the impression that he was trying too hard. "How will they help us? Do they know where the hanyou is?" she asked, returning her attention to the wolf demon.

Kouga smirked, clearly enjoying the fact that he was one step ahead of her. "No, but it doesn't matter. Our primary target, for the time being, is a girl who disappeared with the senator's daughter, Lady Sango. The Captain can track Sango's signals thanks to a device that was placed on her person for security reasons. She will lead us to the girl, and the girl will eventually lead us to the hanyou."

"Shall we, Captain?" he asked as he motioned Hojo to take a seat by the controls.

Rin followed, confused by Kouga's motives. "How is this 'girl' supposed to lead us to him?"

Kouga stopped abruptly, turning to her with a cruel sneer. "Because she's been fucking him for a long time," he hissed and narrowed his eyes. "Either she'll take us to him…," he murmured before a triumphant smirk twisted his mouth. "…or he'll come to us for her."

Rin's eyes widened, immediately afraid for the girl he mentioned. Knowing how determined Kouga was to find the hanyou and that he felt personally insulted for his target's evasiveness, it was hard to judge to what lengths he would go if he got a hold of her. As she returned to her seat, she decided to keep her ears open and hopefully find out if this girl was who Rin thought she was.

She prayed she was wrong.

She sighed in exasperation and settled in for the take off. The buzz of activity around her as now a large group of humans and demons worked together to catch a single man amused the young woman and clouded her fears for a moment. Rin smirked at the growing entourage of pursuers the fugitive had gained.

_Seems like you've earned your reputation, cousin._

End of Chapter 9


	10. Hanyou Detector

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha nor make any money by writing this story. That being said, the S-android belongs to me along with the numerous original characters and places you will be introduced to during this adventure.

_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree._

"Talking"

_Thinking_

**Chapter 10: Hanyou Detector**

The loud bass of upbeat music from downstairs echoed from the dirty walls and sent tremors through Kagome's legs with every small step she took in the long, dimly lit corridor. Up ahead, one of the countless doors slid open and someone stumbled outside, followed by an ear-piercing screech. The figure looked humanoid except for his grey, scaled skin and the two small slits in the middle of his face where a nose was supposed to be. His opalescent clothes were rumpled, and he was fastening his belt as he shouted back toward the room. The language was foreign to the young maid, and the sounds he made were not much different than a snake's hiss.

The alien took a startled step back when a black object that resembled an oily tentacle reached out of the room, aiming for his throat. Still fumbling with his belt, he hurried away from the door, paying no attention to the group of strangers as he passed them.

Miroku's pace did not falter as he led them farther down the corridor. While they passed the wide open door the snake-man had exited from, Kagome glanced into the room from the corner of her eye. Two beautiful, turquoise eyes stared back at her on the stunning face of what the young girl assumed was a woman based on the sight of her naked torso. Long raven hair cascaded down creamy skin until it reached the curve of her hips. Emerald scales covered the lower half of her body that spiraled down to curl into a heap on the floor while she hovered there like a cobra coiled for attack. A mischievous smile played on her blood red lips before her tongue—the long, black tentacle that had attacked the snake-man—glided out and reached toward the passersby.

A growl rose behind Kagome, and the creature snapped her mouth shut with her eyes wide in fear. The young maid knew without a doubt that Sesshoumaru's terrifying glare was trained on the resident alien. In the last few days, she had seen enough of him to learn that it was his way of scaring away unwanted attention.

It worked every single time.

The girl bumped into Sango's back when she failed to notice that her party had stopped in front of a nondescript door. Miroku knocked on it softly and smiled at the room's occupant after it slid open.

"Oh, my! The handsome merchant is back! What brought you here this time, honey?" cooed a sweet voice with an accent Kagome couldn't place.

Miroku chuckled. "Nice to see you too, Taira. I was looking for Inuyasha. Have you seen him lately?"

"No," replied Taira with a sad sigh. "My dear Inu hasn't stopped by for a few weeks."

Kagome flushed with anger at the familiar way the woman spoke of him. Still, curiosity urged her to take a peek over Miroku's shoulder. The woman was stunning with hair the color of cherry blossoms, eyes the color of amethysts and legs that went on forever until they disappeared under a small piece of cloth that barely covered her hips. The maid's mouth popped open, and feeling inadequate, she tugged at her cloak, hiding her body under the thick fabric.

"How's the little one been?" asked Miroku, earning a confused frown from Kagome and a happy giggle from Taira.

"Oh, he's been great," the gorgeous woman exclaimed as she pulled a small child into her arms. "But, he'll be much happier when daddy comes to visit."

Kagome's heart dropped to her feet when her gaze fell on the little boy who was staring back at her with a perfect imitation of the large, soulful golden orbs she knew so well. The dog ears peeking out of the mess of silver hair on his head twitched as his eyes took the young maid in.

She felt dizzy. Neither Taira's nor Miroku's words registered in her mind until another female joined the group. This one looked as perfect as the first apart from her very large, very pregnant belly. A toddler with the famous silver hair and doggy ears crawled by her feet, looking at the strangers with curiosity in her golden eyes.

Her limbs trembling and her mind in a daze, Kagome watched as the newcomer declared that she hadn't seen the hanyou for a while either. Once a third woman appeared from another doorway, hands full of twin babies whose looks required no question to their heritage, the young maid finally snapped out of her stupor.

"No," she whispered as she forced her legs to take a step back from the terrifying scene. She couldn't move, though. Invisible arms held her in place, forcing her to see the pity in Miroku's eyes and the disgust on Sesshoumaru's face while Sango growled curses and death promises aimed at the missing hanyou. Her chest heaving with dry sobs, Kagome begged to be released, but no sound came out of her mouth. She struggled with all her might until finally an anguished scream ripped from her throat and reached her ears.

Kagome opened her eyes with a gasp. Her throat was dry from panting, and her cry still rang in her ears. Her panicked gaze took in the glowing white walls of the small room until her mind registered where she was. A relieved sigh left her lips when she realized she had been dreaming again.

Groaning, she pushed herself up against the pillow while kicking at the tangled sheet. After a few moments of struggling, she gave up with a huff and pulled her legs, along with the damp sheet, to her chest. She rested her head on her bent knees, and her fingers gripped her hair in frustration.

The nightmares had started after their first landing. Having received a good deal of threats from Sango and Sesshoumaru, Miroku had reluctantly lead them to a night club — the one in her dream — where they found one of the fugitive's 'acquaintances.'

Despite her inexperience, Kagome had been able to decipher the nature of his relationship with Taira based on the woman's wicked smile and the sultry tone of her voice when she had talked about him. Her suspicions had been confirmed on their way back to the ship when Sango had started on an incessant tirade about the hanyou's latest defining quality they had discovered: a man-whore. The young maid had been upset at her lady's continuous insults concerning her once precious S-android, but she could neither blame the older woman nor dispute her comments — not after having met more girls like Taira during their subsequent landings.

Kagome wound her arm around her flat stomach. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself that despite the accuracy of most details in her dreams, the dog-eared toddlers and round bellies were unfounded additions of her sadistic subconscious. Of course, the fact that she hadn't encountered another offspring of his didn't mean that there was no other.

That particular possibility didn't sit well with her.

Before she could ponder why that was, Jaken's annoying voice drifted into the room from the intercom, making it clear what had woken her from her slumber. He rudely declared that she was expected on the command deck, and Kagome scoffed in irritation.

There was only one reason she was called into that room.

Even though it was still disturbing, the ritual to locate the hanyou had become a habit in the last few days, much like eating. It hadn't been as frequent at first, but since she had sensed that he was headed away from Mars while they were preparing to land, Sesshoumaru had made sure that she checked his whereabouts every couple of hours. She couldn't complain, though. After all, it was the sole purpose of her presence on his ship.

She was his 'hanyou detector' as the little imp, otherwise known as Jaken, had kindly put it.

Heaving a sigh, she pushed the sheets down and grudgingly climbed to her feet. Not bothering to tidy the bed, she shuffled to the adjacent bathroom to freshen up. What she saw in the mirror there did not brighten her mood. Her hair was a mess; her skin was paler than usual; and the dark circles under her eyes were a testament to her restless sleep. But what really disturbed her was the way her image stared back at her.

She had never seen her eyes so dull before.

Closing her eyes, she turned her back to the mirror. She was losing hope; she knew it. However, she didn't need her image to scream it back at her.

Back in the room, her gaze fell on a shiny black piece of cloth lying at the foot of her bed. Right before their first landing, Sesshoumaru had shocked her by giving her a form-fitting leather suit to wear. He had explained that the material was specifically designed to subdue her scent and with a pointed glance at her belly, he had added that it would keep others from discovering what he now knew. Kagome had been mortified to find out that he was aware of her situation but still had the sense to thank him for being considerate of her privacy. Of course, the stoic man had brushed her off, claiming that he had no desire to look out for his compass while he already had one idiot to chase after.

Shaking her head, Kagome reached for the suit and started dressing. That had been the only time Sesshoumaru had been forthcoming with information. She had asked him how she was able to track the fugitive and why he was after him, but he had always dodged her questions.

His reluctance to share information did not deter him from asking his own questions, though. And like the idiot she was, Kagome found herself relaying her life's story to this stranger in bits and pieces that slipped from her tongue whenever her temper rose or her sadness weakened her defenses.

_And those moments haven't been exactly rare_, she thought as she took the familiar route to the command deck. The little bit of information he had shared had only increased the young woman's inner turmoil. Apparently, Sesshoumaru's kind — Jaken had called them 'demons' once — had a keen sense of smell among other superior abilities. They could track someone by their scent as well as detect what their target had eaten for breakfast, with whom they had recently been in contact and in her case, whose child they were carrying in their womb.

It was scary.

It was disturbing.

But most of all, it was infuriating.

Her anger only grew with the suspicion that Yash had known that she was pregnant and yet, he had left regardless. Even though they called him a 'hanyou,' she had no doubt that Yash was a demon as well. She didn't know if he had indeed been able to smell the changes in her before he left, but if that wasn't the case, she wasn't going to let him find out through his nose until she was ready and willing to share that particular information with him.

Besides, despite how tight it seemed on the outside, her new suit was surprisingly comfortable. She snorted at that thought. She could certainly live without her skimpy uniform.

The door to the command deck slid open before her, revealing the lord and his servant in their usual positions. Miroku looked up from his one-sided conversation with Sango and gave the young maid a tentative smile. Sango, with flushed cheeks and murderous eyes, turned her back on the merchant and stomped to Kagome's side to assume her usual position behind her younger friend. With a tired sigh, Kagome nodded at Jaken, who wasted no time to turn on the map.

Closing her eyes, the girl braced herself for the onslaught of emotions and whispered, "Here we go again."

* * *

A red sky hung over mountains of junk metal, deformed and partially dissolved due to decades of exposure to the poison that was the atmosphere in this God forsaken place. The only sign of life was the lone figure of a man, grumbling and pacing in front of a huge cave. Finally dressed in his usual attire, the dark leather of his snug pants and long coat were in stark contrast to the dirty white of his shirt and the silver-white of his long hair.

Inuyasha hissed in discomfort as he readjusted the mask that covered his mouth and nose. Even though his skin was strong enough to handle brief contacts with the air around him, he wasn't willing to risk breathing the deadly substance directly into his lungs. He was glad his dreaded periodical transformation had taken place during his journey and he had been back to his usual self before he had landed. Otherwise, he would have had to endure wearing more than a measly mask to survive in this environment.

The wind picked up, sending dark clouds his way. His eyes narrowed as he took in the ominous masses threatening to pour burning acid over the barren lands of Zaehir — the junkyard of this part of the galaxy. His pacing came to an abrupt halt, and he whirled on his heels to face the cave.

"Oi!" he yelled toward the light pouring out of the cave's large mouth. "Are you done yet, old man?"

"Almost," answered a muffled voice from the depths of the large, natural tunnel.

"Almost," repeated the hanyou, lowering his voice to a deeper, scratchier level in a close imitation and scrunching his face up in irritation. "How much longer," he added loudly, praying he wouldn't have to play word games for the rest of his visit but knowing that it was hopeless.

A low chuckle reached his ears before the voice replied, "Patience, young friend."

Inuyasha's cursed ear started twitching in annoyance. "Damn you, Cheeko," he grumbled before he resumed his pacing with a renewed vengeance. His claws tapped an impatient beat on the handle of the gun hanging from his belt. He had been in Zaehir for longer than he would have liked and he was getting antsy. He cursed once more, this time aiming at the seekers of the jewel. Had the fuckers not been so eager to catch him, he wouldn't have felt the need to change transportation as often as he had.

His first stop had been Mars, where the generous general — the father of the strawberry blonde he had charmed — thanked him for safely escorting her daughter by landing him a ship to aid the rest of his 'business' trip. The ship had been a good piece, but it was a part of the general's fleet. It would have been dangerous to continue his journey with it in case he had been discovered. Changing transportation as often as possible was a good way of throwing his followers off the track — something he hadn't had the time to do before he had reached Earth.

In his defense, he hadn't had time to stop and think when his ship had been destroyed during the fight that followed right after he had taken the jewel. He had jumped into the closest ship then and couldn't have done a thing about the fact that the damn thing had been a part of the imperial fleet. His trackers had had direct access to his every move, and they had been right on his tail even when he had reached warp-speed.

He wasn't comfortable with the results of that mistake and he was doing his best to avoid it this time.

With that mindset, he had made a few more stops, trading or stealing ships on his way and always staying away from certain people and places he had frequented in his previous journeys. Zaehir was the one place he had least enjoyed visiting, but the fact that he was there solely for business helped him endure the disturbing environment for the time being.

The fact that Cheeko was the best off-the-record mechanic in the galaxy was not something he could ignore in his current position. That old man had set up shop in Zaehir, the place no one sane or lawful visited unless it was to dump their garbage. To Cheeko, it was a heaven where he could find all the spare parts to build the fleet of ships he then traded to those in need. His eyes had sparkled with excitement when Inuyasha had shown up with a brand new ship he had stolen and demanded to exchange it with one of Cheeko's rebuilt ones.

The ships the old mechanic made were off the grid, which would provide the hanyou with relative safety from his trackers. It was a good thing too since he wasn't planning to make another stop until his next destination: meet Naraku's man at the Black Hole and get rid of the jewel.

In tandem with his mind, his free hand sneaked inside his coat and his fingers delved into a hidden pocket nestled over his heart. Taking hold of the small object resting in there, he released a relieved breath; all the trouble he had been through because of that little pink ball had made him paranoid lately. Bringing his hand out, he loosened his fist slightly to peek inside. 'Pinkie' lay in his palm as dormant as it had been since before he had left Earth. The silent calm he had received from the widely sought-after jewel was simply gone.

Something had changed.

He couldn't understand why or how since he hadn't even touched the jewel while he had been otherwise occupied with his little mistress. He knew she hadn't been in contact with it either. Regardless, even though his mind couldn't pinpoint what it was, something was clearly missing.

What if it posed a problem with his customer?

A sharp exhale through his nose signaled his increasing frustration, and he tucked Pinkie back into his pocket. It didn't matter what the bastard thought. He hadn't gone through so much trouble for nothing. He had done what no one else could, and now, he deserved his reward. Still, he had no mind to mention the change in the jewel.

…just to be safe.

Thunder boomed from up ahead, shattering the silence of the dead lands of Zaehir and resonating through mountains of junk metal surrounding the area. Inuyasha glanced at the now dark sky when a raindrop, wet and hot, landed on his cheek. "Shit," he cursed as his skin sizzled and burned. He didn't need further persuasion to return to the safety of the cave and he stomped through the wide entrance, wiping at his cheek with his sleeve and growling in agitation.

Inside, the ground was paved with a web of rails used to transport ship parts to the various workstations scattered around the large space. The rest of Cheeko's crew was working on these stations with the assistance of archaic robots while the genius mechanic was busy with the finishing touches on the hanyou's new ship.

Inuyasha's growls ceased when he noticed one of Cheeko's apprentices — a young woman with long, purple hair and a tall, voluptuous figure — biting her lip as her dark eyes raked his form hungrily. She had made it obvious early on that she had a thing for his animalistic features, which should have been flattering. Instead, he felt exposed and uncomfortable.

This was why he had stayed outside and risked getting burned in the first place.

Feeling like a coward, he practically fled to Cheeko's side and hid behind the barrier that the leg of his new ship provided. He guessed the apprentice was pretty since all the women that were confident enough to come onto him had been attractive. He hadn't looked long enough to form an opinion, though; he couldn't be bothered to do so. His most recent experience on the route to Mars and his subsequent lack of will to try again had taught him that he now preferred them with dark hair, blue eyes and the sweetest floral scent.

_And a warm smile on her pink lips._

Nothing less seemed to earn the approval of his recently picky dick. Luckily, he had more urgent matters to attend to than the reasons behind his current lack of 'appetite.'

"Why else," he grumbled as he sat on a metal box next to where the upper half of Cheeko's corpulent body disappeared into the depths of his new ship. "My dick's being a dick; that's why."

"Did you say something?"

Inuyasha glanced at the old mechanic to see him leaning down to look at him with the single eye nestled in the middle of his forehead. The smoky color of his thick, elephant-like skin accentuated his bright green stare. His round belly almost touched the ground as he bent at the waist, making the hanyou wonder how he managed to fit his giant body into the small hole under the ship.

"Nope," he answered, folding his legs under him and getting more comfortable on his perch.

One of Cheeko's four surprisingly bony arms came down to point at the hanyou with the wrench in his hand. "That's my newest toolbox, you know," he informed seriously.

Inuyasha glanced at the shiny but simple box that seemed pretty insignificant to him and raised an eyebrow in question. "So?"

The mechanic's long, red mustache twitched as he smirked. "So, don't go peeing on it, dogboy." Snickering at the growling hanyou's incredulous expression, the old man turned his back to rummage inside yet another toolbox by his feet.

Inuyasha opened his mouth to retort with a curse or two, but his voice died in his throat. He winced in discomfort when he felt the now familiar tug at his heart. His hand covered the spot while his brows furrowed in annoyance. It drove him crazy that the weird sensation kept coming back with increasing frequency. Still, he was glad that he no longer fell to his knees every time it happened.

If he stopped resisting, it wouldn't hurt as it did now. In fact, it would be the opposite. He knew because he tried it.

Once.

It had been the third time it had happened after his unpleasant experience in the shitty bathroom of the Mars shuttle. He had been exhausted due to lack of sleep for days, and when the pull had returned, he had slouched back in his seat in the cockpit, closed his eyes and simply let the sensations wash over him.

It had been surprisingly gentle, reminding him of soft caresses of dainty fingers and coaxing out of him a longing he hadn't acknowledged that he carried.

It had been warm and comforting like coming home… wherever home was.

It had been reassuring as if nothing and no one could touch him if he just stayed.

It had most certainly been a mistake.

The moment he had come back to his senses, he'd found out that he had turned the ship around and had been heading in the opposite direction. Since then, he had refused to succumb to the treacherous siren's call that insistently threatened to ruin his efforts to finish his task.

When the episode was over and he could breathe again, he noticed Cheeko's curious stare trained on him. The mechanic snorted as he wiped his hands with a cloth that looked dirtier than his oil coated fingers. "You owe me for that," he grumbled.

Confused, Inuyasha followed the old man's gaze down to the toolbox he was seated upon only to find out that his claws had dug into the lid of the box, crumbling the tough metal like a piece of paper. "Shut up," he muttered as he released his hold on the ruined lid and flexed his fingers to relax them. "I already gave you a shiny new toy for that piece of shit you call a ship."

Cheeko huffed in annoyance at his insult. "This _piece of shit_," he said as he patted the slightly worn surface of the ship's underside, "is ready to go if you're done sulking, dogboy."

Inuyasha's ears perked up. "Fucking finally!"

Eager to leave, he jumped to his feet and patted Cheeko on the shoulder in a manly show of appreciation. He snickered at the old mechanic's mock scowl and the female apprentice's disappointed huff as he leaped up to the door of the ship.

"So long, old man," he yelled before he disappeared inside in search of the control room. Yanking the mask off his face with a groan, he rubbed the abused skin of his jaw as he reexamined his new home for the foreseeable future.

The ship was bigger than the others he had used lately. It even had a couple of cabins he doubted he would ever need. Still, it would look like a bee next to the intergalactic monstrosities roaming through space, which was good for many reasons. It was easier to stay undetected with an inconspicuous piece of junk. Besides, he didn't have a crew to help him fly a ship the size of a metropolis.

The small control room housed two seats, both of which were covered in worn leather. Settling on the left side, the hanyou checked the panels for good measure before starting the engine. As the ship lost touch with the ground, the cave's roof slid open with a loud groan for his departure. He ascended slowly until he passed through the wide gap. Once the ship was safely out in the open air, he increased the power and shot through the sky with a scream of excitement.

In less than an hour, he was happily out of the atmosphere. He set the coordinates to his next and hopefully final destination before he would be free to go wherever he liked. With a single touch of his finger, the ship switched to warp speed and was gone, leaving its shadow behind.

* * *

Golden orbs stared down at her with unconcealed passion within their swirling depths. The fact that her eyes were closed couldn't wipe the image away from her mind. His whispered words that had once soothed her now drove her to the brink of madness as they echoed in her ears insistently.

"_I am real… when I'm with you."_

_No._

"_I _am_ real…"_

_No._

"_I am _real_…"_

_No!_

Kagome clutched her hair painfully as she shook her head in a desperate attempt to chase away the memory, but neither his husky voice nor the vision of his smoldering eyes would leave her alone. Huddling farther into the corner, she hugged her knees to her chest.

In her heart, bitterness fought against sorrow and despondency, helping her see his deception in a new light. The jerk had had the gall to tell the truth to her face, knowing that she wouldn't notice the blatant truth staring back at her. And, what she had understood from his concealed declaration turned out to be a big fat lie.

Even though he indeed was a real person, everything about him had been fake when he had been with her.

The passion.

The tenderness.

The fact that he belonged to her.

The unspoken promise that he would stay.

_Nothing_ about him had been real. What did it matter that he was flesh and blood like he had secretly admitted when she was ultimately left behind?

"Liar," whispered Kagome as she wiped at a lone tear trailing down her cheek. Even though she had gotten used to her sessions with the map, the aftermath was still hard to handle. Her emotions were a jumbled mess, making it impossible to focus on anything else. Because she detested the idea of the others seeing her like this, she quickly made a habit of hiding in a deserted corner of the ship far away from the control room.

After they had reached their current destination but before they entered the atmosphere, Sesshoumaru had made her use the map again to confirm that the fugitive had not moved on. He hadn't, and that finding both terrified and excited the young maid. Unable to deal with her conflicting emotions, she had escaped to her corner in hopes of calming down without the scrutiny of prying eyes.

He was so close.

Finally.

And, she still didn't know what she wanted to do when she saw him.

Soft footfalls broke through her misery, startling the young woman. She looked up to see two long legs clad in dark, loose pants before their owner slid down the wall, settling himself next to her on the floor.

"Quite a nice little corner you have here," he commented as he appraised the dimly lit, empty hall with raised eyebrows. "Very cozy." His dark blue eyes slid to her small form; the amusement within them barely concealed his pity. "You wouldn't mind sharing, would you?"

Leaning her head back against the wall, Kagome released an exasperated sigh. "What do you want, Miroku?"

"Nothing," said the merchant with a careless shrug of his shoulder. "I noticed that you disappear after every time you do your hocus pocus."

"I just need peace of mind for a few minutes," she snapped immediately, making it clear that she wanted to be left alone.

"Of course," mumbled Miroku, unfazed by her attitude. However, he made no move to leave.

Silence stretched as they sat side by side. Even though he made a show of ignoring her, she could feel his gaze on her every few seconds. She fidgeted nervously, waiting for him to spill what was in his mind until she couldn't take it anymore. "What? Spit it out."

Miroku beamed despite her obvious hostility. "How do you do it?" he asked as he eagerly turned to face her.

The young woman blinked in confusion. "Do what?"

"How can you tell where he is?"

"Oh…"

Kagome bit her lip as she considered his unexpected question. She didn't want to share the knowledge of such an intimate experience with anyone, but she wanted to know why it was happening and Sesshoumaru was not willing to help. Miroku was _his_ friend. Perhaps, if she told him how she was able to sense the hanyou, the merchant would be able to tell her why she could. It was that tiny hope that propelled her to try to explain.

"It's like…," she started only to realize that she didn't have the words to articulate her experience. Taking a deep breath, she tried again, "When I'm…" Stuck once more, she added her hands to her endeavor, wildly gesturing to her chest as she whispered, "There's this _thing_…"

The _thing_. How could she describe it when she didn't know what it was? An unbreakable, untouchable and invisible string that somehow bound her to _him_… At least, she assumed it was him. When put into words, it made even less sense to her, killing the small inclination she had to voice it.

With a huff, she grumbled, "I just can, okay?"

Miroku stared at her in silence as if he could read her mind if he tried hard enough. Suddenly more nervous than she'd been before, Kagome started playing with a lock of her long hair that fell over her shoulder. She didn't notice that one of her hands strayed to her neck, her fingers circling the mark they exposed until she heard the merchant gasp. She snatched her hand away, covering the spot with her hair, but it was too late.

"What did he do to you?" asked Miroku.

The young woman glanced at him tentatively, wondering if he meant the bite mark or if it was a more comprehensive question. In either case, wasn't it obvious? She scoffed, irritated by his concerned expression and his incessant probing. "What do you think?" she snapped.

"Well, I know, but…" Sighing in exasperation, he sagged against the wall and laid his arms over his bent knees. He turned his head to return her glare. "Why are you so angry?" he demanded with more determination than he had shown so far. "I mean, yes, he lied, _we_ lied, but it's not like he had a choice in the matter."

When Kagome opened her mouth to protest, he held up his finger. "No, let me finish. He really didn't have a choice. It was I who pushed him into this situation, okay? You just showed up right after he did, and then the soldiers were at my doorstep. Sending him with you was the only way to protect him. He couldn't tell you the truth, and you can't tell me that you wouldn't have given him away if he did."

Taking the young woman's silence as confirmation, Miroku pressed further. "Did you ever stop to think how he feels? You used a real person as your S-android, Kagome. I don't think that's any different than having a personal sex slave in this case." Ignoring the furious blush that rose on her cheeks, he continued heatedly, "Do you think he liked being ordered to bed like a whore? You act like he enjoyed it but you didn't while you were the one that made the decisions."

Kagome stared with her eyes wide, her mouth agape and rage bubbling beneath her skin. "I... I…," she stuttered before a frustrated cry escaped her throat. "Argh! I did no such thing! He was the one that started it all! I opened my eyes one night to find him on top of me, you idiot. And then I…" She stopped abruptly when her brain caught up with her mouth and she realized what she blurted out in her anger and what else was about to follow. Blushing profusely, she mumbled, "Well, it just got out of hand after that."

"What the…?" The disbelief in the merchant's voice urged Kagome to peek at him from behind the curtain of her bangs. Now he was the one who looked like a deer caught in headlights. "You mean Inu…?" he started to ask, seeking her gaze. When Kagome averted her eyes in shame, he exhaled sharply through his nose.

It took Miroku a few moments to open his mouth again. "I… I can't… Dammit. I can't believe he did that! I know I sent him with you, but I never thought…" He shook his head, refusing to believe what he just heard. "There has to be another explanation for this. The Inuyasha I know wouldn't initiate something like that, Kagome. He's not like that with women."

His last comment struck a nerve within the young woman. Had the merchant not been there as they had confronted almost as many flings of the hanyou's as the light-years they had traveled in the last few days? Her shame forgotten in favor of her incredulity, Kagome's eyes snapped up to stare at him pointedly.

Miroku rolled his eyes. "I don't mean that he hasn't taken advantage of his good looks before, I just…" A sigh of frustration ended his awkward defense. Taking a moment to sort his thoughts, he turned to face the young woman. His eyes were soft when they captured hers, and if it had been a couple of weeks ago, Kagome would have believed their sincerity without an ounce of doubt.

"Look," the merchant started solemnly. "You won't believe me, but I'm not trying to defend him for the sake of some twisted asshole code. I will be the first one to admit that he's a selfish bastard who stole from others for personal gain and even killed people in the process. He certainly doesn't have many redeeming qualities, but he's a firm believer in free will. If there's one thing he will never do, it is to force himself on an unsuspecting, innocent girl. I know this. I know _him_."

The intensity of his stare and the certainty in his voice were getting to the young maid. Kagome tried to break eye contact, hoping it would protect her walls from the impact of his words. But, the merchant wouldn't let her.

"And, I think I know you, too… even if a little," he said as he craned his neck to keep her gaze. "I saw you. Every single time you escorted Sango to my place, I _saw_ you. You were always so innocent and hesitant; I knew you wouldn't use him as an S-android's meant to be used." Shaking his head, he chuckled darkly. "It seemed like the perfect plan. He'd be safe with you, and you'd have a little excitement in your life until he found a way out."

Kagome bit her lip as she watched the merchant try and solve the puzzle she had presented. He was right in his assessment of her. She wouldn't have started anything no matter how much she wanted to. Her cheeks flamed at the memory of just how much she had actually _wanted_ to. Could he be right about his friend, too? _Was_ there an explanation that didn't make the hanyou a lying, opportunist jerk?

The poor girl's heart skipped a beat at that thought, and that was enough to bring her back to reality. Even if she assumed that the merchant was being honest for once, it didn't change the fact that what he suggested was to search for the impossible while the sad but obvious truth glared her in the eye: He _was_ a lying, opportunist jerk. It pissed her off that she considered the possibility of an alternative for even a moment.

Why was she so eager to find some good in him?

The answer lay within her body, happily growing each second she agonized over its father's wrongdoings. Her arms wrapped around her waist as if to protect the innocent soul in their embrace from the ugly emotions consuming her suddenly tired soul.

Could her baby feel what she felt?

"God, I...," whispered Miroku, bringing her attention back to him. "I can't believe… It doesn't make sense."

Resting her head against the wall, Kagome sighed in exhaustion. "Nothing makes sense to me anymore," she grumbled. She closed her eyes, thinking the conversation was finally over and the merchant would leave her alone now.

She was wrong.

"I wonder one thing, though."

Kagome bit back a groan and refrained from looking at him, fearing that the action would encourage him to continue. But, the renewed enthusiasm in Miroku's voice told her he was going to anyway.

"How did you find out that he wasn't a droid?" he asked. "I mean, you didn't notice all that time when you were… you know… _together_. You only found out after he was gone? How?"

Once his meaning registered, Kagome's eyes snapped open in panic. How could she explain that she hadn't suspected a single thing while she had been intimate with him but figured his deception only after he was gone? The answer was simple: S-androids were _not_ designed to knock you up. However, that wasn't something she wanted the merchant to know, at least not until she decided whether she wanted to share the information with his precious friend. Seeing how hard he tried to defend the notorious thief for the last hour, she doubted that he'd keep her secret from the hanyou.

"Oh… umm…," she mumbled, trying to stall for time while her mind desperately searched for a diversion. "It-it didn't make sense that he was gone, and... and…" Right as she felt she like she could cry from frustration, her fidgeting fingers came in contact with a piece of paper safely tucked into the pocket of her suit. The girl sighed in relief before she brought it out. She turned it over and over in her grasp, noting that its edges were worn out from frequent use and the constant rubbing of her fingers, before she offered it to the merchant. "Here."

It was weird that the note that had broken her heart was now her savior. Even weirder was the fact that her fingers refused to release their grip when the merchant tugged at the note. Fighting her unreasonable reluctance to be parted from the object that had tortured her ever since the moment she had laid eyes on it, she let the confused man take it.

Miroku's brows were furrowed in curiosity as he unfolded the tiny square with care. Kagome watched his expression change from confusion to shock, back to confusion, and then to her chagrin, to amusement as he read.

"Well," he commented with a smirk once he was finished. "That was nice of him."

Appalled at the merchant's reaction to the words that made her blood boil, Kagome snatched the note back with a murderous glare sent his way.

Miroku raised his hands defensively. "I'm just saying that he could've left without a word."

"He did leave without a word!"

Ignoring her protest, the young man continued, "I'm surprised, though. He not only left you a note to explain his absence but also warned you about what is to come. Curious, indeed. The Inuyasha I know wouldn't have bothered at all. It was a risky move on his part, and it makes me wonder…"

Kagome waited for him to finish, but he sat there staring at her in thought. His gaze moved over her huddled form, assessing her as if he was _seeing_ her for the first time. When she could no longer take his silent scrutiny, she snapped, "What?"

"He's protective of you," he concluded, astonishment in his voice and in his wide eyes.

Kagome scoffed at the absurdity of his comment. "It seems to me that the only one I needed protection from was him," she grumbled.

"Really?" Miroku asked with an eyebrow raised in challenge. "If you think he's dangerous to you, then why are you going after him?"

Mouth hanging open, the girl stared at him in surprise. Before she could even form a response, Jaken's squeaky voice rang in their ears, announcing that they were entering the atmosphere.

"We better buckle our seatbelts," muttered the merchant. Climbing to his feet, he extended his hand to help her up. Coupled with the soft smile on his face, the gesture reminded her of an olive branch. When she accepted his offer, his smile turned into a wide grin.

"Come on," he urged with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "You're gonna just _love_ the Black Hole."

End of Chapter

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

_#1: See? I didn't make you wait another year for this update. Progress! The original version of this chapter turned out to be longer than I anticipated, so I had to break it into two chapters. That means the next update will be coming soon._

_#2: The S-android won 3rd place in Best AU category at IYFG (3rd term, 2011). Thanks to _Sparkling Snowfall_ for nominating it and to everyone who voted for it!_

_#3: He's My Girl won 1st place in Comedy at IYFG (3rd term 2011). Thanks to _ananova_ for the nomination and to everyone who voted!_

_#4: I am sad to learn that the IYFG is closing now. The guild was there when I started reading fanfiction and lead me to many of the best stories this fandom has to offer. The announcement of its end felt like the end of the fandom too. Still, I know many people who have more stories to tell. We'll be here as long as you're reading!_


	11. The Black Hole

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha nor make any money by writing this story. That being said, the S-android belongs to me along with the numerous original characters and places you will be introduced to during this adventure.

_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree._

**Chapter 11: The Black Hole**

The wind whipped Rin's ponytail around as the glider flew over the bustling streets of Port Klaudron. The underground city was protected from the burning rays of the closest star by a two-mile-thick barrier that surrounded it in a semi-sphere. It was hard to tell the time of day, especially since the lights never went out in this place.

The inhabitants of Port Klaudron never slept, it seemed.

_I wouldn't sleep here, either_, she mused as she watched two gangs engage in a gunfight in the middle of a crowded square several feet beneath her feet. With a curse, Kouga maneuvered the glider to escape a wayward laser shot. It hit a neon light instead of the wolf demon's head, sending shards and sparks raining down on them. With a squeal, Rin tucked her face into Kouga's back and tightened her grip on his waist while the festive aliens partying around them paid no mind to the ruckus.

She doubted they were coherent enough to notice.

"Hold on," shouted Kouga and leaned forward on his seat. His hand twitched on the handle, and the narrow vehicle between their legs shot forward with a roar.

"Are you sure they're still here?" asked the young woman, knowing that his pointed ears could easily catch her softly uttered question.

"The human captain says so," yelled Kouga over his shoulder.

"I wouldn't bet on it," she muttered in irritation. "He's such an idiot."

The wolf demon's well-built frame shifted as he shrugged. "Let's hope he's right this time."

"Unlike the last several times," grumbled Rin, remembering all the stops they made only to find that their targets had already left, always a step ahead of them.

She felt Kouga's growl vibrate through his chest before he snapped, "If you're tired of this shit, you should've stayed with the ship like I told you to."

"Mind your tongue, wolf. I'm not one of your worthless pack mates," she shot back. The ice in her tone shut him up, and Rin smirked at his leather-clad back.

Contrary to her companion's misguided assumption, she was far from displeased with the fact that their group had missed Sesshoumaru and his new friends at every turn. By pure luck, they had not yet encountered the dog demon's famous ship, the Dokuga, either. Even though she was looking forward to seeing Kouga's face when he finally realized who he was racing against in pursuit of the hanyou thief, the young woman would rather have him oblivious to that fact for as long as possible.

Unfortunately, she hadn't had an opportunity to warn her accomplice since the human soldiers had joined their party. It had been difficult to go behind a sizable pack of wolves, and the additional company had made it impossible to sneak around the ship. So, every time they left the ship to hunt, she had no choice but to insist to tag along with them in case they actually did come upon their unsuspecting prey.

Her musings came to an abrupt halt when she noticed the rapidly approaching wall of a massive building standing right on their path. "Watch out," she cried.

Kouga's only reaction was to snicker at her fear. _The bastard._ Only several feet away from the stone walls, the glider made a sharp turn upward and started ascending up the wall without losing speed. Rin felt the back of her seat extend to cover her back safely, but her muscles still burned from holding onto Kouga for dear life.

They glided up the tall structure for what felt like hours, passing terraces every few floors as the building narrowed gradually. From the corner of her eye, she caught flashes of the rest of their party as they raced up on their gliders.

They stopped on a large terrace a few stories below the roof. Fisting the wolf demon's jacket for balance, Rin hastily dismounted the vehicle that still hovered in the air. She let out her breath in a long, relieved sigh when her wobbly feet touched the concrete floor. Their companions crowded the large terrace in mere seconds, laughing and hooting with the lingering effects of adrenalin.

_Men_, thought Rin with a roll of her eyes.

"Still here?" asked Kouga to Captain Hojo, who hastily shoved his sleeve to check the tracking device on his wrist. When the young human captain nodded in confirmation, a smirk appeared on the wolf demon's face.

Rin's heart skipped a beat, partially from anxiety and partially from excitement. Turning on her heels, she headed for the entrance with determined steps. "Well, what are we waiting for?" she yelled over her shoulder to the men who were busy checking on their weapons.

A muted curse was followed by hurried footsteps before she heard Kouga's voice right behind her, grumbling about her choice of attire. Rin smirked, knowing that among all the men dressed in dark, nondescript clothes, her tight, white suit stuck out like a sore thumb. She preferred to be easy to notice in case the dog demon was indeed there.

After all, he had always been partial to her dressed in white.

Or so she believed.

The click of her heels drowned out the wolf demon's mutterings as she marched to the double doors above where a neon sign flashed 'the Black Hole' with big, red letters. Just as she reached her destination, the doors swiveled open, forcing the young woman to take a step back.

Two tall figures came out. From their stoic faces and spiked hair to the dark suits they wore, they were mirror images of each other, causing Rin to doubt her vision for a moment. Their pitch black eyes — both pairs disturbingly larger than a human's — glanced at the uneasy woman briefly before dismissing her.

"Stop it, you guys!" shouted a trembling voice from behind the duo. "I swear I wasn't cheating!"

As the creepy twins stomped past Rin, she saw the tiny figure they were dragging outside. Clutched by his thin arms, the creature had purple skin that was a couple shades darker on his bald head. Bright green eyes were large in fear, and miniature fangs peeked out from his lipless mouth as he begged with his captors. Just as Rin opened her mouth to tell the men in black to leave the poor creature alone, they hurled him up. With a squeak, he flew over the edge of the terrace.

The young woman gasped in shock as she watched the little purple man disappear down the side of the building. Before she could recover, a shrill laughter reached her ears, and the helpless creature from a second ago rose to hover in the air, flapping four sheer wings on his back and sporting a smug grin on his face.

"So long, suckers!" he yelled before he saw the outraged twins draw their guns.

"He certainly cheated," mumbled Kouga from behind her. "Don't let appearances fool you. I hear the fuckers that hang around this place are the worst kind."

With a shake of her head, Rin turned her back to the laser show taking place on the terrace. Two steps into the Black Hole, her gaze landed on yet another set of doors and her irritation with the wolf demon spiked. "Why the hell did we not use the elevator?" she spat as she glared at him over her shoulder.

Kouga blatantly ignored her question while his nose twitched like a mad dog. "I can't catch any familiar scents in this shithole," he grumbled with a scowl on his face.

A smirk tugged at the corner of Rin's lips as she turned her attention to the crowd.

_Let's see what I can catch._

* * *

Inuyasha's ears drooped under the hood of his cloak in a vain attempt to block out the boisterous laughter that rose from the table in front of him. The three ugly, big-mouthed ogres continued to cackle and holler, adding volume to the continuous buzz of the crowded bar.

The hanyou's eyes scanned the dimly lit room, noting with relief that despite his shady appearance, he looked less conspicuous than the rest of its occupants. The Black Hole was a frequent stop for the unlawful, and among all the killers and gangsters gathered within those walls, a simple thief was just a small fish in a pond.

It was one of the safest places he could think of for a business meeting.

His _date's_ familiar, unwelcome scent reached his nose before her slim figure blocked his view of the green ogre's bulging, floppy belly. Long, shapely legs tightly wrapped in sparkly silver fabric came to a stop several inches away from his face. With an irritated sigh, he looked up to glare at her crimson eyes.

Her painted lips twisted into an amused smirk. "You're not very noticeable when your stench is covered," she taunted as she slid into a chair across from him.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes even though he was pleased to hear that his dark cloak indeed subdued his scent. "Hello to you, too, Kagura," he grumbled.

The woman crossed her legs and threw one arm over the back of her seat, making herself right at home while staring at her companion's barely visible face with a raised brow. "What's with the get up?"

The hanyou snorted in irritation. "I can't very well walk around without some cover thanks to your master and his damn pink ball. You have no idea what exactly that bastard got me into."

A wide grin broke out on Kagura's heavily made-up face, and her eyes sparkled with mirth. "You haven't even met the man. How do you figure he's a bastard?"

One of Inuyasha's eyebrows rose under the shadow of his cloak. "He hired me to do his dirty work," he spat with distaste. "That's enough proof in my book."

"And what does that say about you since you're the one who actually does the dirty work?" shot back Kagura as her grin twisted at one end to reflect the sadistic pleasure she received from her insult.

Her supposed prey wasn't fazed, though. His lips twisted to match her expression, exposing one sharp, white fang to her gaze. "Oh, I'm the biggest of them all."

Kagura chuckled heartily before she nodded her agreement. "Yeah, I've heard as much." Her face turned serious, then. "I also heard that you have quick hands. What took you so long?"

Inuyasha sighed at the reminder of how much time he had lost in a task that should have been simple. "I can't help it when there are complications," he muttered indignantly.

A soft breeze blew from his back, no doubt due to more patrons entering the already packed place from one of the doors at the other side of the inn. With it came a wave of scents he had been trying to ignore since he had set foot in there. The nasty combination of sweat and smoke assaulted his nose, and he scrunched it up in disgust.

Until a very familiar fragrance registered his senses.

His ears perked up, and his eyes widened. His back straightened as his head snapped to the side, golden orbs searching frantically for the source of the sweet, flowery aroma. He took in a deep breath, expecting to catch another sniff of _her_. It wasn't until that moment when he couldn't detect it anymore that he realized how much he had been yearning for her scent.

So much that he started imagining things.

He _had_ to be imagining it. After all, there was no way his sweet, innocent mistress could be there, in that dark, dirty hole where the scum of several galaxies gathered for a good time. Disappointment sank in, and he berated himself for feeling that way.

His distraction from the conversation had been momentary, but it felt like hours had passed since he had last spoken. He was startled when Kagura's voice reached his ears.

"Complications?" she prodded. "What? Did you fall for her or something?"

Inuyasha blinked as he registered her question. "No!" he cried reflexively even as he wondered how in hell this woman knew about Kagome. When he realized that it wasn't possible, he felt his cheeks heat due to the implications of his instant assumption. "Umm," he mumbled as he adjusted his hood to hide his rare blush. "Who're you talking about?"

Kagura rolled her eyes. "The oh-so-pure White Lady, of course. Who else?"

"Kikyo?" He snorted at the absurdity of her suggestion. "Pure, my ass," he spat, remembering the woman he had stolen the jewel from and her holier-than-thou attitude. "She is a domineering, racist bitch. There's nothing pure about that."

"A man of taste," purred Kagura as she leaned forward, crossing her arms on the stained table and pushing her cleavage up not so subtly. "I like that."

Golden orbs paid no attention to the view the demoness presented, too busy scanning the crowd for a flash of long, raven hair, sparkling sapphire eyes or a warm, inviting smile. Coming up empty handed once more, Inuyasha returned his gaze to his current company with a resigned sigh.

"Enough with the chitchat," he snapped, his irritation increasing by each second he had to spend in the damn hole that made him delusional. "Did you bring my money?"

Kagura pursed her lips in mild annoyance before she delved two fingers into the low neckline of her tight shirt and pulled out a small pouch from between her breasts. "Here," she mumbled as she dangled the loaded piece of cloth in front of his face like bait. "The jewel?"

He patted his pocket with one hand while the other snatched the pouch from the demoness' fingers. Easing the strings holding it closed, he peeked inside. Several pieces of _tsecra_ greeted him, glowing softly within the confines of black cotton. Inuyasha's eyes sparkled in response as he stared at the turquoise rocks that equaled a hefty exchange even in the remotest parts of the galaxy. However, his excitement died the moment he counted his payment.

"What the fuck?" he cried out in outrage as he recounted the rocks. "This is not even half of it!"

The woman shrugged nonchalantly. "Naraku says you haven't earned your share yet."

"The hell I haven't!"

The hanyou's punch landed on the table with a loud thud, causing even the rackety ogres to glance at him.

Kagura simply clicked her tongue at his outburst. "Easy, boy. I'm just a messenger. He wants you to deliver the jewel to him in person and without those idiots on your tail. When you do that, you can yell in his face as much as you want."

"Why me?" snarled Inuyasha between gritted teeth as he glared at the demoness with all that he was worth. "I already did the hard work. Why can't you take it to him?"

"Are you serious?" she asked incredulously. "There's no way I will touch that shit. No demon who was fool enough to try lived to tell his tale."

The hanyou scoffed. "Is that why he hired me? Because he couldn't touch it?" Receiving a blank stare that he took as confirmation, he growled, "That fucking bastard."

Ignoring his grumbling, Kagura threw a small chip on the table. "The coordinates are here. Do not linger this time. He doesn't want to be kept waiting for long."

With that warning, she stood up, leaving the hanyou to fume alone.

* * *

Smoke filled the stuffy atmosphere in the crowded bar, making Kagome's eyes water. The lighting was dim, and patrons of various species occupied the numerous tables as well as the narrow spaces between them. Everywhere, she was surrounded with bodies, pushing and pulling and eventually sucking her into the mass as she struggled to follow her companions. It was fitting that the place was called the Black Hole.

She kept her eyes glued to the back of Sango's head, using the sight of her mahogany locks as her beacon, until a seven-foot-tall wall of rusty metal — a server robot — blocked her view.

"Excuse me," she mumbled as she ducked under its outstretched arm only to bump into something soft and warm once she straightened.

Startled, Kagome took half a step back, almost losing her balance when her foot collided with the server's wheels. A slim hand with three long fingers gripped her shoulder, steadying her before letting go. She looked at the unusual appendage in surprise. Her eyes followed the ruby colored skin stretched over it up to a long arm until they settled on what stood in front of her nose — a pair of breasts, each one bigger than her head, looking ready to explode any moment. The girl gasped in mortification when she realized what exactly she had had her nose buried in a couple of seconds earlier.

The two overinflated red balloons belonged to a woman — a female giant that was more than a head taller than the young maid. She was barely clothed; a tiny triangle of white cloth covered her womanly parts, and two flowers covered the centers of her breasts.

Kagome opened her mouth to apologize but forgot what she was going to say when she noticed that the flowers were moving, getting smaller by the second, until they disappeared completely to reveal two nipples.

They had teeth.

"Are you lost, little one?" asked a melodic voice, making the girl's horrified gaze to snap up to the female alien's face. It was angelic just like the voice, but Kagome could see razor sharp fangs peeking from between her full lips.

"No, she's not," came an agitated reply from behind the red Amazon before the maid was dragged away by a grumbling Sango.

"Stay close, Kagome," admonished her lady. "I don't like this place."

Kagome sighed in response, refraining from making a promise she couldn't possibly keep while she dutifully followed the path Sango cleared with her authoritative and more than a little hostile demeanor.

Once they found the two male members of their odd group, the girl received yet another warning in the form of a raised eyebrow from Sesshoumaru. Once the demon deemed his message was successfully delivered, he readjusted the hood of his long, dark cloak and returned to scanning the crowd with his piercing gaze.

Kagome stood awkwardly to the side while Miroku conversed with the barman in a language that reminded her of the crows she used to chase away in her grandfather's garden. Oddly, the unpleasant sounds brought forth the yearning she had for home, for something familiar. However, more potent than that, and getting stronger by the second, was the feeling that she _was_ close to something else that was undeniably familiar.

Or more accurately, some_one_ else.

_He_ was there.

In that dark, disgusting place filled with hundreds of strange creatures was the very person she had set out to find. When Sesshoumaru had asked a few minutes ago, she had denied it, but she could feel it, feel _him_. She had spent so much time purposely reaching out to him; it didn't surprise her that she could tell without any conscious effort when he was near.

She looked to the intimidating demon, who she had noticed was in a silent communication with someone she couldn't see in the crowd, and then to Miroku and Sango, who were yet again in a heated argument. A confrontation with those three was sure to scare the hanyou away.

That was a risk Kagome was not willing to take.

Her foot moved before she made the decision. One small step backward was followed hesitantly by another until the sight of her distracted companions was blocked by tall bodies of aliens. Before she could talk herself out of it, she turned on her heels and pushed her way toward the opposite side of the inn where her instincts screamed that he was.

Every few steps, she rose on her toes and looked around frantically. She knew he was there, right in that room. Her blood rushed in her veins in rupture; her skin tingled in anticipation; her body was more alive than ever, telling her that he was close by; and she could feel his pull on her soul. The farther away she got from her companions, the faster her heart beat. Her breaths came out in short gasps, partially from excitement and partially from fear.

Feeling dizzy, she leaned against a stone pillar. Her gaze swept through the scary faces surrounding her as she struggled to gather her bearings. Boisterous laughter broke through the incessant noise of the crowd, bringing her attention to a table occupied by three green ogres. The giant creatures sat on chairs that disappeared under their bulging forms and drank a steaming liquid from cups that looked more like pots. The one facing her had a shiny ring on his crooked nose, and something else sparkled at his elbow.

A short but careful inspection revealed that the glittery object actually belonged to a woman sitting at the table behind the ogres. She seemed pretty and confident in her skin by the way she sat there as if she owned the place and the daring clothes she wore. No matter how striking the woman's appearance was, though, Kagome's eyes were drawn to her companion.

A soft gasp left the young maid's lips, and she put her hands on the pillar she was partially hidden behind as if the contact would stop her knees from giving out.

There he was, sitting opposite the pretty lady in a shadowy, back corner, hidden from prying eyes by a dark cloak concealing his most striking features. Nothing could hide him from her, though. Even if it was not for the inexplicable force that drew her to him, she would have known it was him by the angle of his jaw, the familiar smirk on his lips, or the faint glow of his golden eyes under the shadow of his hood as they stared at the woman in front of him.

She had found him.

A triumphant smile broke on her face but was quickly chased away by an uncomfortable feeling as she watched the dark-haired beauty laugh at something the hanyou said. _Who is she? What is he doing here with her?_

Dismissing the female for the moment, her eyes drank in his features that were visible to her. He looked tired just like she did. But despite that, he looked more handsome than she remembered, which was the closest to perfection her imagination could conjure. It was no wonder she had so easily believed the lie.

A soft breeze blew a few stray tendrils of hair to her face. She absentmindedly tucked them under her hood, her focus on the conversing duo and her mood turning sour. She saw the hanyou stiffen right before his head snapped in her direction. Stifling a yelp, the girl ducked behind the pillar. One of her hands covered her mouth while the other pressed on her chest, over her racing heart.

Even though she intended to confront him, she didn't want to do so while he had company. And, she certainly didn't want him to notice her and bolt before she had a chance to make her move. Taking a deep breath, she craned her neck to peek at his table only to sigh in relief when she saw that he was still there.

The woman took out something from inside her shirt, and in a flash of movement, the hanyou had it in his grasp. Whatever it was, it made him upset, and he punched the table in his anger.

The invisible rope that coiled around Kagome's heart eased a little when she realized that what had seemed to be a friendly encounter was actually a business meeting. It was the same ugly feeling she had experienced whenever she had met or thought of his female acquaintances. An unpleasant emotion that made her blood boil and run cold at the same time and made her want to hit something.

_Is this what jealousy feels like?_

She scoffed at the turn of her thoughts, unwilling to admit how possessive he made her feel. Still, she couldn't deny the relief that washed over her when the woman walked away with a stoic face.

Finally, Yash was left alone. This was her chance, but the thunderous expression on his face made her hesitate. Frozen in her place, she blinked a couple of times, realizing for the first time that he was a real person. She had known it for a while, of course. But knowing it was different than witnessing it.

He was _real_.

So was the murderous rage radiating off him, and it was suddenly difficult to approach him.

While the girl willed her hands to stop shaking and her feet to move, the hanyou dropped a few coins on the table. The sight of his back headed toward the exit with his head bowed and his shoulders hunched under the cloak snapped her out of her daze.

He was leaving.

Always leaving.

_No, you're not,_ she thought as she followed his steps, determined not to be left behind this time.

End of Chapter


	12. Cornered

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Inuyasha nor make any money by writing this story. That being said, the S-android belongs to me along with the numerous original characters and places you will be introduced to during this adventure.

_Special thanks to my lovely betas Ai Kisugi and Hedanicree._

**Chapter 12: Cornered**

"Are you sure you didn't see him?" asked Miroku for the hundredth time. "Long silver hair, golden eyes… cat-like ears?" He put two fingers on each side of his head and wiggled them in a ridiculous imitation of the notorious thief. "Though, he'd kill me if he heard that," he said with a low chuckle, before whispering conspiratorially, "He considers himself more of a canine, that one."

Leaning her weight against the bar, Sango sighed in exhaustion. The merchant had been bugging the bartender, mostly repeating himself, for the last ten minutes. No matter how many times the poor guy said he hadn't seen anything, Miroku wouldn't give up. It was almost like he was stalling. The woman's eyes narrowed at that thought.

"Sounds like he's hard to miss," drawled the bartender with a roll of his seventeen beady eyes that took up the top half of his face. His six arms kept wiping empty glasses and pouring drinks as he added sarcastically, "I'd remember seeing _such_ a weird guy any time."

Sango snickered under her breath while Miroku hummed as if in deep thought. A mischievous glint came to his blue orbs then, and a smile stretched across his face. "Well, my friend," he chirped in a too excited voice. "Do you happen to have any Drozzt milk?"

Startled at the sudden change of topic, Sango gave him a look of disbelief, but the merchant conveniently ignored her. The drink he mentioned was known to have knocked men twice his size with a single shot, and it was strictly illegal in most civilized communities. Was he seriously thinking about getting drunk at a time like this?

The bartender shook his head in the negative, and Miroku schooled his features into an obviously feigned expression of shock. "Really? I could swear I saw a couple of guys up there enjoying that rare treat."

The bartender turned in the direction he pointed with alarm, and Miroku took advantage of his distraction and climbed on the bar. "You don't mind if I take a look, do you?"

Sango moved to put a stop to his ridiculous actions, but her hand froze in midair before she could grab the merchant's shirt when a familiar name drifted to her ears.

"Captain Hojo's nowhere to be seen, bro," said a male voice a couple patrons down the counter. "He's too busy trying to keep up with that grumpy wolf. Plus, this place is packed. It's not like he can keep an eye on all of us in this madness."

"I dunno," replied his companion reluctantly. "Shouldn't we be searching for the girls as he ordered? What if they're here?"

"Nah," drawled the first one. "They probably already left, like they always do. Come on, man; enjoy yourself for a few minutes. Who knows when we'll get a chance again?"

Her heart in her throat, Sango peeked behind the hairy alien sitting on a stool next to her. Just as she suspected, two of Hojo's troops were leaning against the counter, placing their order. Her first reaction to hearing the captain's name was dread, which grudgingly but quickly turned into hope. Her father must have sent them after her and Kagome. This was good news. She was not happy with their current company. Miroku was annoying, but she believed he was mostly harmless. Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, still gave her the chills. She didn't trust that guy to keep her and Kagome alive once he got hold of the fugitive.

Captain Hojo would keep them safe, no doubt, even though she didn't like the idea of putting herself and her young maid in the mercy of her cheating ex-fiancé. Sango scoffed at that thought before straightening her shoulders in defiance like the noble woman that she was. Hojo and his obsession with Kagome could be dealt with, she decided. She would just have to stay glued to her friend all the time, which she had been doing already since they left her father's mansion.

Deciding they were the lesser of two evils, she took a step forward to let her presence be known only to be pushed back by a firm hand on her shoulder. Her startled gasp turned into a hiss of pain as a sharp claw dug into the skin of her throat threateningly. Her wide eyes found the narrowed golden orbs she came to despise, glaring at her in warning from under the shadow of Sesshoumaru's cloak.

Sango swallowed uneasily, recognizing the promise of death in his glare, and remained silent as the two soldiers' conversation floated into their ears.

"Stop fidgeting," grumbled the first soldier. "Told you they're not here. Look around you; do you think Lady Sango would linger in a place like this?"

"Lower your voice," hissed his comrade. "We're not supposed to mention _her_ name."

"Only around those who might recognize it," argued soldier number one before he took a large gulp from his drink.

"Doesn't' matter. It was a direct order from the senator, and you better obey if you want to keep your job."

Soldier number one groaned at the reminder. "Damn, I've never seen the guy yell so loud. And, the look on his face…"

Sango cringed at the mention of her father's ire. Having been on the receiving end of his tirades more than a handful of times, she knew well how unpleasant the experience was. She expected him to be furious, seeing how she failed to inform him of her departure under the watchful eyes of a certain dog demon. Not that she knew how she would adequately explain the reasons of her impromptu journey without giving the man a heart attack. However, she was confused as to why he sent troops after her and why he was adamant on secrecy. Did he already know more than she would like him to? How did they find them so far from home anyway?

And who was the grumpy wolf?

Part of her questions was answered when the second soldier spoke next. "What did you expect? An intergalactic criminal had taken refuge under his roof, and as if that wasn't enough, his daughter runs off with the number one suspect. He won't survive the elections if this scandal gets out."

Sango's shoulders slumped in defeat. So, her father knew and was fighting to salvage his reputation from the blow that her secret defiance had brought upon him. After all, it had been her brilliant idea to bring an outlaw into his home. The fact that she had no idea what 'Yash' really was made no difference. Perhaps she should have tried harder and warned him, but she had honestly believed that no one would be the wiser as to the fugitive's stay at the mansion, seeing as the guy had left long before the girls did. Apparently, she had been wrong. But, how did they find out?

After a short pause, the first soldier picked up the conversation, bringing forth another aspect of the problem Sango had yet to worry about. "Wonder what'll happen to the other girl, 'the number one suspect.' I remember seeing her a few times. She was a shy little thing, but hot as hell. Hard to believe she'd dare harbor a criminal under our noses."

_The number one suspect…? Kagome!_ Dread filled the young woman's heart even as more questions bombarded her mind. How did they know so much? Even if they somehow found out the reason of their departure, wasn't it safer to assume Sango was the one who dragged her maid with her instead of the other way around? _This is bad news,_ she thought with a frown. Her father would protect her; she was practically untouchable due to her position, but the same could not be said for Kagome. Suddenly, her fears regarding the young maid's future were not limited to the safety of the poor girl's fragile heart.

Unfortunately, her worries were confirmed by the second soldier. "Maybe she did; maybe she did not," he said nonchalantly. "In any case, she's condemned to spend a few years locked up. All the evidence is against her. Besides, the senator needs a sacrificial lamb to save his ass. Better an orphan servant girl than his own flesh and blood."

Sango's blood ran cold. Hearing her fears voiced out loud with such a lack of concern made them all the more real. Would her father let Kagome, the child that had been left in his care, take the blame for something she did not do purposefully? _Yes, he would,_ whispered the bitter voice of the betrayed young girl hidden in the darkest corner of her heart. Hadn't he forced her, his own flesh and blood, to endure the constant presence of her ex-fiancé even when her wounds were still fresh, all in the name of retaining his political alliance with the man's family? Even though Senator Tajiya was essentially a good man, his pride and career, unfortunately, came before everything else.

In trying to bring some happiness to the girl's lonely life with a pseudo companion, she had unwittingly doomed her dearest friend to more sadness and loneliness than she had initially thought.

Tears of regret filled Sango's eyes, and then the pressure on her neck disappeared. She would not go to their pursuers after everything she heard, and Sesshoumaru seemed to know that as his cold gaze finally left the young woman.

Then, he growled.

Startled, Sango glanced around in search of the source of his displeasure; it didn't take long to find. Standing atop the bar counter and looking like a beacon to their whereabouts was Miroku, hopping from left to right as the bartender tried to shoo him away from his workstation. He was garnering a lot of attention with his moronic actions, and Sango was glad the soldiers didn't seem to recognize him.

The merchant's antics came to a halt with a deathly glower from their stoic companion. Grinning sheepishly, he climbed down the counter. "What?" he asked with a careless shrug of his shoulders. "I was just trying to see if our mutual friend is indeed here."

"Well, did you?" retorted the lady, seeing that Sesshoumaru's attention returned to the crowd.

Miroku looked confused at her question. "Did I what?"

"See him?" she elaborated with barely restrained irritation.

"Nope," replied the merchant merrily as he relaxed against the counter and folded his arms on his chest.

Sango rolled her eyes at the dopey grin on his face. She understood Miroku's reluctance in joining their quest to find his friend, but did he have to rub his satisfaction in their faces every time they failed?

"Where's the girl?" barked Sesshoumaru suddenly, startling the duo.

Sango blinked as she tried to make sense of the question. "The girl? Kagome?" A quick scan of their immediate vicinity revealed the absence of the young maid, and a temporary numbness that usually preceded panic spread through her limbs — including her tongue. "Sh-she was r-right here," she stammered.

"Imbeciles," spat the demon lord with a disgusted shake of his head before he pushed his way into the crowd.

"Hey! Wait," called Sango after him, moving to follow, only to be stopped by a familiar arm around her shoulders.

She glared first at the offending appendage and then its owner, taking note of his soft smile and the slightly dazed look in his eyes. "Did you drink something?"

"Nope," replied the merchant. The small lift on the corner of his lips unnerved the young woman as he brought his handsome face closer. "No need to; nothing can intoxicate me quite as much as your beauty does, my dear Sango."

His supposedly charming words were a bucket of ice that quickly dispensed her momentary lapse of judgment. _Handsome? What the heck?_ Narrowing her eyes, Sango snarled, "Hands off, bastard. And don't address me as if we're friends."

Miroku's free hand went to his chest in an exaggerated show of hurt. "You wound my heart, my lady," he murmured so softly that Sango would have believed him if he didn't perk up almost immediately. "But, let us discuss this matter another time. Right now we need to go," he declared sternly as he steered her back to the doors in the opposite direction Sesshoumaru had taken.

"Go? Go where?" demanded Sango, fighting his hold on her shoulder for naught. "You said you didn't see anything!"

His quiet chuckle tickled her ear before he whispered, "I lied."

* * *

The double doors of the Black Hole slammed close behind him as the hanyou stomped into the terrace. The contents of the small pouch he'd received jingled with each angry step he took, reminding him of their measly amount. It only furthered his fury.

"Should've known he would pull something like that. The coward can't even show his face. That son of a bitch," he grumbled as his eyes searched for a way down the building. He had no desire to get stuck in the elevator with smelly aliens and no way to escape.

Not again.

A couple of gliders at the edge of the terrace caught his attention. Two bulky figures stood next to them, chattering animatedly. Sizing them up, Inuyasha smirked at his good luck. _Too big, too slow…_

Confident that he could snatch one of the vehicles before their owners even saw him coming, he bowed his head, hiding his brilliant golden orbs and shiny silver hair under the shadow of his hood. As he silently crept toward his target, he gripped his cloak tighter around him to keep it from swishing in the wind and catching attention. His fingertips came in contact with the round bulge still resting in his pocket, and his fury spiked anew. Caught off guard, he couldn't stop the growl that build up in his chest. Immediately, the previously oblivious aliens paused their conversation and looked up at him.

"Dammit," muttered Inuyasha as their wary gazes landed on his suspicious form. Eyes narrowed, their hands went to their belts just as another unexpected sound broke the tension.

"Yash!"

With a single cry of his name, time stopped for the hanyou.

"No," his lips mumbled while the rest of him, including his heart, froze. Certainly, his newfound obsession was taking its toll on him. First, he had deluded himself into believing that he had caught her scent. And now, he was hearing things. _She_ couldn't possibly be there.

Could she?

'Yes!' cried out the bigger, treacherous part of him. The moment that slim chance registered his brain, his heart leapt in its cage, beating furiously as if to make up for lost time. Taking a deep breath, he slowly, almost fearfully, turned around.

When his gaze landed on the small figure standing by the doors he'd just exited, the rest of the world faded away along with his plans to take off as quickly as possible. He blinked several times, expecting her to disappear like a mirage, and then rubbed his eyes for good measure. However, the girl he'd been begrudgingly obsessing about still stood in front of him, just out of his reach. Once the hanyou finally accepted that he was not hallucinating, his shoulders sagged and his breath left him in a long sigh, partly in relief and partly in surrender.

His wide eyes took in her tiny form that was hidden beneath a thick, dark cloak not much different than the one he wore. Under its hood, rosy lips trembled on porcelain skin; he would have recognized those lips anywhere. A thick lock of long, raven hair escaped its confines and waved in the wind. His nose twitched, catching her heavenly, but curiously subdued scent. _It must be the cloak._

That solved one puzzle.

What surprised him almost as much as seeing her in flesh was the warmth that spread through his entire being, creating a pleasant but urgent tingling in his fingertips. When his eager eyes met her anxious blue orbs for the first time after so many weeks, he knew he was in trouble, albeit for a much different reason this time.

But as usual, he didn't care.

He could feel a smile forming on his lips as he watched her stomp toward where he stood frozen. The skirts of her cloak ruffled with every step she took, revealing a set of long legs clad in black leather. He would've marveled at her unusual choice of attire if he could severe his gaze from hers for a moment; however, her eyes were alight with an emotion he couldn't quite name, captivating him within their sapphire blaze.

The closer she got, the easier it was to pick up her scent even though it was still faint and slightly… altered? _Yup, definitely the clothes,_ he mused as he caught another glimpse of shiny black fabric stretched over firm, but as he recalled well, soft skin. Instinctively, he inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring with the effort. Her gentle fragrance caressed his senses, soothing the tension he hadn't realized he'd been harboring since he had left her behind. For the first time in weeks, he felt like he was home.

She stopped before him, letting him drink in the perfect combination of creamy skin, full, pink lips and soulful, doe eyes that was her face. His smile widened, and her name left his lips in a hushed breath. In a daze, he watched his hand move, the calloused tips of his fingers itching to caress the softness of her cheek.

_CLAP!_

The magic was broken abruptly with the sound of skin meeting skin rather harshly, followed by a sharp sting on his cheek. Too stunned to react, he gaped at her with his mouth hanging open while he digested the fact that she had actually slapped him.

He would have seen that coming had he not been caught off guard by her unexpected appearance. Now that he knew she was real and could still feel the proof of it on his abused skin, he noticed the fury radiating off her in waves. Her sapphire orbs were blazing. _And with good reason_, he acknowledged. After all, despite the common belief, he was not below admitting that he had wronged her.

_It's not like I had a choice_, the stubborn part of him argued, but he pushed it to the background at the sight of the pain and uncertainty that flashed briefly in her stormy, and suddenly misty, orbs.

"Look…" he started, intending to explain how he had been forced to pretend and apologize for dragging her into this mess. He didn't get a chance though for he was cut short by another slap to the same cheek.

To be honest, he did see that one coming. However, the blubbering mess he'd turned into in front of a puny human girl was unable to stop it.

And, it pissed him off.

His rapidly receding conscience reminded that he probably deserved that one too, but he wasn't going to admit it for this one hurt down to his pride. Here he was, trying to say sorry even though he wasn't one hundred percent convinced that it had been his fault alone, but she wouldn't even give him the chance to do so.

What the hell was he doing, anyway? He had survived hell, fought his way out of blood and steel, and become the nightmare of the richest of the universe. And now, he was acting like a pansy for the sake of a pair of pretty eyes. This wasn't like him.

_Nope, not at all._

Clenching his jaw, he glared at the girl with all he was worth in a silent warning. Either she didn't get the message or she didn't care because she glowered right back at him. When her little hand rose for a repeat performance, he didn't wait to feel the sting of her blow. He caught her wrist in midair and growled, "Stop hitting me, dammit."

Her breath hitched, and fear crossed her features for a brief second — too short for him to even begin to regret his reaction. Her fury returned full force then, and she gritted out, "Don't. Touch. Me."

"You started it," he shot back as he refused to release his hold despite her struggle to free her arm. He smirked, enjoying the tug of war and the flush that rose on her cheeks, but his fun was short-lived. The girl caught him off guard once again and stomped on his foot, using what felt like her whole weight to dig her heel into his poor appendage.

With a pained cry, Inuyasha let her go, focusing his attention on his throbbing foot. A string of curses tumbled from his snarling lips as he bounced on one foot and clutched the other in his hands. "Fuck it," he grumbled once the pain subsided enough to let him walk with dignity. "I don't have time for this."

Not bothering to glance at the infuriating girl, he whirled on his heels, determined to get the hell out of there — with or without a glider. The two aliens he had all but forgotten about were doubled over, silent laughter shaking their bulky shoulders. The hanyou scoffed, contemplating if he would feel less miserable were he to take his anger out on them and smashed their ugly faces.

Two steps into his retreat, a tug on his cloak halted his progress. "Oh, no, you don't," protested Kagome from behind him as she yanked him back with surprising force for such a delicate creature. "I'm not finished with you yet."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. She had slapped him silly twice already and almost broken his toes. What else did she want from him? He glared at her over his shoulder. "Try and stop me, princess."

Panic flashed in her eyes, and the pull on his cloak eased for a brief moment only to return more forcefully. His hood fell back, and the girl seized her chance and went for his hair. A painful yank on his forelocks did the trick, and an involuntary cry escaped him as he turned to her. His hand flew up and grabbed her wrist to ease the tension on his scalp while a growl built up in his chest.

The girl didn't let go, and neither did he.

"I knew it," spat Kagome as she matched his glare. At his raised eyebrow, she kindly explained, "You're a jerk!"

"Oh, yeah?" asked the hanyou sarcastically while inwardly warning himself not to squeeze the fragile appendage in his hand too tightly. He found the latter task rather difficult to accomplish at the moment. "Well, you're acting like a bitch, so I'd say we're even."

Almost nose to nose with the girl, Inuyasha felt the rush of warm air on his lips when she gasped at his choice of words. She opened and closed her mouth, no doubt struggling to come back with the nastiest retort her pitiful vocabulary of profanities could provide, and ended up drawing his attention to her lips.

Eventually, she found her words, but he heard none of it as he considered how easy it would be to keep her from annoying him further. All it would take was to press his mouth to hers. He wondered if she would taste as good as he remembered. It looked like she would with those lips so rosy, so plump, so close…

…and, getting closer.

He realized with a jerk that he'd been leaning in to test that theory when the bubble she had inadvertently put him in was burst by a masculine voice.

"It's him!"

The couple jumped at the unexpected sound, and Inuyasha winced as he felt the effects of the movement on his scalp. His eyes searched for the source of the interruption while he renewed his efforts to free his hair from her grasp.

In the far side of the terrace where it circled the corner of the building stood a man with a thin line of spiky hair sticking up like blades in the middle of his shaved head. Dressed in dark clothes, he was holding a gun in one hand and waving it back and forth as if to call someone over while the other hand pointed at the hanyou.

A quick glance to where the gliders had been extracted a curse from him. The aliens had left with his best chance at an escape while he had been distracted by the girl. In the meanwhile, Kagome was stubborn as a mule, refusing to release her hold.

She was quickly becoming the bane of his existence.

"What the hell are you waiting for, you idiot?" shouted a new voice as two more figures appeared from the corner to join the first one. "Shoot him!"

Three shots rang in the hanyou's ears, one of them missing his shoulder by a mere inch while the other two dented the concrete before his feet. With no cover in sight and no way to make a hasty exit with the frightened girl still clutching his hair, Inuyasha did what every sane man would do to survive. He pulled Kagome to stand in front of him with her back to his chest.

After all, they wouldn't want to harm an innocent female.

At least, that was the way it always worked.

The sudden action caused the girl to finally release his forelocks. Faced with three murderous strangers and their guns, Kagome gasped in shock. "What are you doing?" she hissed.

"What does it look like? I'm saving my ass," he snapped before adding in a grumble, "…which wouldn't have needed saving if you weren't such a stubborn wench."

His impromptu plan seemed to work as the enemy held their fire, unsure about how to proceed without killing 'the hostage.' Kagome squirmed in his grasp, chanting her version of curses under her breath and almost making him lose his footing in her endeavors. Moving quickly, Inuyasha let go of her wrist only to snake his arm around her waist and held on tightly. He took his gun out of his belt and fired a couple shots, forcing the attackers to take cover while he inched his way toward the doors.

"What is your fucking problem?" cried out yet another new voice as its owner joined the enemy. "Shoot the bastard before he gets away!"

"But, Kouga!" exclaimed the one with the spiked hair. "He's got the girl!"

"What the hell? Then kill the girl first, you imbeciles!"

The hanyou cursed inwardly as the one called Kouga yelled his order. Everything happened too fast then. His ears caught the sound right before he glanced back to see the doors to the Black Hole swing open. A tall figure covered in a dark cloak much like his stepped out. While his instincts screamed at him to run, Inuyasha stood paralyzed as a pair of golden eyes glared at him from the shadows of the stranger's hood. A light green substance oozed from the mysterious man's fingertips, taking the form of a whip in the blink of an eye.

It was only his well-trained reflexes that made the hanyou jump right before the whip landed where his feet stood a moment ago. The loud crack it made on the concrete was drowned out by a boom as a laser shot blasted exactly the same place.

Losing his momentum as he landed on the ground, Inuyasha rolled with Kagome in his arms until his head hit the short wall at the edge of the terrace. Disoriented, he lay there for a deadly second, taking in the flushed cheeks and wide eyes of the girl on top of him.

Sparks rained over the duo when his opponents blew out part of the railing, but it was his little mistress' cry of terror that brought him back to his senses. Scrambling to his feet, he crouched low in front of the girl, forcing her to stay between his back and the half-wall with a hand on her arm.

It seemed that the bastards that hunted him for stealing had no qualms about killing an innocent girl.

_Fucking hypocrites!_

His eyes darted between the group of incompetent hunters and the creepy whip-wielder as laser beams continued to fly around him. The hunters took off in his direction and the lone stranger raised his whip again.

Inuyasha didn't wait to see where it would land. He whirled on his heels, grabbed Kagome by the waist and jumped over the railing in one smooth move.

As he rapidly descended the side of the building, the wind caressed his skin and ruffled his hair and cloak in his wake. He loved this — the adrenaline rush his 'job' never failed to provide him with. In the brief seconds he was in the air, he would have forgotten about his pursuers and enjoyed himself thoroughly were it not for the girl screaming in his ear. As it was, he chose to ignore her while he jumped from terrace to terrace on his way down.

Halfway down the building, she seemed to regain her composure, and her screams turned into outraged cries. "What do you think you're doing? Stop! You're gonna kill us!" One of her tiny fists pounded on his chest while the other, ironically, clutched at his shoulder. "I said stop, you jerk! Let me go! I told you to not touch me!"

Here he was, endangering his life to keep her safe, and she still bitched at him about touching her. The ungrateful wench could hold a grudge, it seemed. He snorted at her stupidity. "How am I supposed to save your ass without touching you?" he snapped as he rose in the air with yet another powerful push of his legs.

A pitiable growl came from the kitten in his arms. "I wouldn't need to be saved were it not for you, you idiot!" He could almost feel her mentally piercing his skull with her glare. "Let me go!" she screeched while her hand flew up and yanked on his ear.

"Dammit!" cursed Inuyasha as the unexpected pain threw him off balance, and he barely avoided toppling over when his feet touched the floor on a deserted balcony. "What was I thinking?" he yelled and dropped the girl before straightening up.

She fell on her butt with a surprised squeak.

"Stay away from my ears!" he shouted with a finger pointing at the stunned girl.

This had been a bad idea. She had been nothing but trouble since the moment she showed up. She was, no doubt, going to cost him his life if he let her and she wouldn't even appreciate his sacrifice. _Stupid, ungrateful wench!_ His anger drowned out the voice of his conscience, and that was fine. He would be damned before he let that pathetic, mushy part of him dictate his actions again.

Knowing too well that he would change his mind if he kept glaring at her annoyed yet somehow hurt expression, he whirled on his heels and stomped to the edge of the balcony. "And, stay away from me, you bitch!" he shot over his shoulder before he jumped, leaving her gaping after him.

She would be fine. She wouldn't be in danger if it wasn't for him; she said so herself.

_So, there…_

* * *

In the short span of eighteen years, Kagome had lost more than she had gained, but she had always accepted her fate graciously. When she had asked about her parents, missing two baby teeth in the front and her hair in pigtails, she had eagerly listened to her grandfather's tales of honor and bravery and never once had she resented them for not being there to chase away the monsters hiding under her bed. When grandpa had passed away, she had pushed away her loneliness by believing that he had joined her parents in heaven to watch over her. When her classmates had drifted away after discovering the meaning of social classes, she had tried to understand their obligations and accepted their decisions. When her only friend had built a wall between them, she had respected her wishes and loved her despite her aloofness.

When she had lost her virginity to a droid, she had chosen not to dwell on the lack of romance or how pathetic she was for not having at least a real lover for her first time. And when the said droid turned out to be a wanted criminal, she hadn't cried over the loss of her dignity.

No.

But as she watched the hanyou's retreating back from her spot on the floor, Kagome felt angry tears gather in her eyes. Why was it that one man — one reckless, infuriating, rude, arrogant, beautiful _jerk_ — was able to make her want to revolt against her fate? Why couldn't she simply accept that he wanted nothing to do with her?

Why was it so hard to watch him leave again?

As if in answer to her unvoiced questions, her trembling hand came up to cover her abdomen as the confusing mixture of dark and light, black and silver disappeared behind the half wall of the balcony. She swallowed a scream of outrage, choosing once again not to dwell on the unfairness of it all, and focused on her current state. Her bottom stung a little from the short fall, but otherwise, she felt fine. She wasn't shot, and despite all the adrenaline-filled rolling and jumping around, Yash had surprisingly managed to keep her from taking the brunt of his actions, for which she was grateful.

_Perhaps he is not as uncaring as he seems_, she mused absently as her fingers caressed her belly in soothing circles.

As quickly as that thought came, it was drowned out by an undignified snort and a roll of her eyes. The man had used her as a shield, forced her to face barrels in his stead, and her treacherous heart was still fighting to find some good in that selfish jerk. She sure was a glutton for disappointment.

Unable to look away from the spot she had last seen the notorious thief, she shakily rose to her feet. What was she still doing here? She had abandoned the only home she had ever known, consorted with dangerous strangers, traveled halfway through the galaxy, and risked her life just to have a chance to confront him. She had gotten what she wanted only to find that everything she had gone through to find him meant nothing to him; the jerk just left her behind — alone and defenseless.

Again.

What reason did she have left to linger in this godforsaken place?

"None," she whispered as both her hands splayed possessively over her abdomen. "I have nothing else to share with him."

With a determined nod, she wrapped her cloak firmly around her form and turned to search for a way into the building only to bump into an unyielding wall of muscle. Her heart fluttered at the sight of dark leather stretched over a defined chest. She glanced up, stupidly hoping to see the twin suns that so callously broke her heart no longer than a minute ago. Cold azure orbs stared back at her instead, sending a chill down her spine. The man's long, dark ponytail fell over his shoulder as he towered above her, and his cruel smirk revealed sharp, canine fangs.

"Well, well," he drawled as he tapped the tip of his gun under the trembling girl's chin. "What do we have here?"

End of Chapter

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

1# Sorry, folks. This update came much later than I planned. Between traveling abroad and the laziness the Southern sun bestowed upon me in the last couple of months, I'm surprised I managed to update at all!

2# The latest craziness with FFN upset most of us. My co-author of 'He's My Girl,' Ai Kisugi, also suffered the wrath of FFN mods when they deleted our shared work from her account. It was not unexpected, seeing she was harassed by a couple of dedicated readers about the double post. However, an official warning and a chance to discuss the lack of options concerning co-authoring would have been a more civilized and fair way of solving such an issue. My heart goes out to those who suffered the same treatment or lost their favorite fics to the 'spring cleaning.'


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